Harvest
by StillThunder86
Summary: Evil now stands among the turtles' ranks. How do they stop one of their own? How do they keep themselves from also becoming a part of the Harvest?
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer**: TMNT does not belong to me...still. Which is good, 'cuz this is the kinda stuff I do.

A/N: This one is for RadicalCriminal who wanted to see a horror story. Which I promised to start posting in September. So, before any more of this month sneaks away, here's the beginning! Prologue is in 1st Person/Present, the rest will be 3rd Person/Past Tense. Just wanted to try something different to introduce our baddie.

Warnings: Eventual blood, disturbing imagery, and general ugliness to follow. Rating is T but it may go up.

Prologue

They're just not going to get it, are they?

I, the accused, sit surrounded by my judge and jury in a semi-circle of chairs. Chairs which are carefully arranged beyond my strike range, I might add. Can't say as I blame them. They all bear the marks of my handiwork. And their sibling now bears the marks of theirs.

Oh, I did not escape completely unscathed from the conflict myself. I can feel the pressure of a swelling cheek against teeth. I sense the tender tug of bruising forming on skin. And I can taste the blood congealing upon his lip. His family may not believe it, but I'm more distraught about his blood being spilled than they are.

I have more invested in it, you might say.

Speaking of which, I squeeze a fresh dose of paralytic from my venom sacs into the turtle's system. He is no threat at this point, but it allows a few sweet drops to be drawn into my jaws as I relax against his neck. I swear it's liquid gold. If I were capable, I believe I would have purred. My body contracts and writhes along his skin, savoring the flavor as if I'll never taste it again.

Good things, I think, should be appreciated to the fullest.

Pulling myself from my indulgence, I realize the quiet one is staring at me. Blatantly, not in the sly way he has been. His brow is furrowed and an unmasked look of revulsion pulls at his lip. That's odd, he's been virtually expressionless until now. What has...ahh, there's his problem.

The enjoyment of my vessel's blood has crept into the nervous system, thus hanging _my_ smile upon _his_ face. Probably a tad unsettling to behold. I am tempted to keep it in place, though, seeing as I've finally gotten under the quiet one's skin. His constant, withdrawn analysis has been irritating me since we met. His focus shifts towards the vessel's empty eyes and he looks away, sharply, rubbing at the back of his own neck. I wipe the smile off.

I glance to the right. Mr. Tall-Dark-And-Brooding is being just that. He's the only one standing behind his chair. His arms are tucked tight to his chest and all I can see of his eyes are thin lines of gold. The knuckles resting in the crook of his elbow are interchanging between dark green to a paler color bordering white. My guess is he's running through their options of how to deal with me. I can confidantly predict that none of the scenarios end with my good health.

That's all right. I have scenarios of my own.

I wonder if it's dawned on him yet. The fact that his brother was never intended to suffer this fate. After all, it was Raphael who crossed my path three nights ago. It was his heart which attracted my Lady's attention. He was the one I was sent to obtain. Had he come alone to save his friend, none of us would be here right now.

But Leonardo was the one who fell, so Raphael remains free.

I wish I could validate the knowledge for him. But every time I open my vessel's mouth, I'm told to shut it.

They may consider my nature evil, but at least I'm not rude.

The final brother is sitting almost directly across from me, hovering at his father's shoulder. This one is fun. He is incapable of hiding his thoughts like the other two. I can see that I frighten him, unnerve him, but his brother's appearance may have something to do with that. I suppose I should have cleaned him up a bit before coming to face his family. But serving the Lady takes time, and the blood splashed across Leonardo's face and chest had dried by the time I finished. I hadn't even noticed it on my way here.

Apparently, Michelangelo isn't accustomed to seeing his brother saturated in such a manner. I'll keep that in mind for next time. Still, his resolve to stay and face me is kind of sweet. I like this kid.

He's leaning forward, pressing his palms together as he stares, resolutely, at the floor. The only time I can rouse even a furtive glance from him is when I shift his brother's weight. I do so now, stretching out these wonderfully powerful legs in order to ease the tingling in the rearside. We've been sitting like this for far too long. My vessel's hands are completely numb.

They kind of crudely lashed me down to this chair after they overpowered me. Four against one, nothing to celebrate. Besides, I wasn't the one who started this meeting out by fighting. I had come to talk. Now, I find myself getting the evil eye not only for my position on their precious leader's neck, but also for leaving their home in shambles. I may not have Leonardo's skill, but I think I managed quite well against his motley little relations, all things considered.

I heave a sigh, which gains everyone's attention. More importantly, it sharpens the look coming from the rat. He's the one we're really waiting on. He has sat here in silence with all his focus bent upon his little boy's face. Searching for a sign, a hint of an internal struggle, a flicker of his son's fighting spirit, hoorah. Trying so hard to pierce the blank discs which once shone with his eldest's soul.

For the life of me, I can't figure out how to fill those eyes up with myself. It's a hard concept for someone like me who's never had eyes to express themselves with. It's all trial and error right now, though, I suppose I'll manage it eventually.

It's nice that Leonardo has a family that is so desperate to find him. But that is the fatal error that they don't yet get. They think that because they've got me here, they've got him too. They have hope that with his body in sight, the rest of him is within reach of redemption. All they have to do is remove me.

Good luck with that, first of all.

But even if they succeed in expelling me, they'll have wasted their efforts and time. Time Leonardo does not have. He currently has the pleasure of entertaining my Lady while I'm away. But he's only sixteen, there is not much of a harvest in him. He'll do for now, and She seemed pleased when She cracked into his heart, but he's little more than an appetizer. And the city above us is a buffet of prime candidates to sustain Her.

Speaking of time, I've graced these four with plenty of my own. I have duties to attend, tasks which She needs fulfilled before the true harvest begins. I don't have the luxury of waiting for some old rat to realize he may as well be staring into an empty car to find his boy. Places to go and all that...

My proboscis, the slightest, fiber-like thread it is, tightens around the vessel's spinal cord. I manuever his eyes to meet the rat's stare, head-on. Pushing the corner of his mouth up into a confidant grin, I look over the four of them once more.

"Well, gentlemen. I believe this is known as a stalemate, is it not?"

* * *

><p>* Doing the final push on Colorblind, hopefully will get the ending chapters posted next week. Then I'll be back with the rest of this story going into October, which is kind of fitting, right? *Thumbs up* Are you guys liking this teaser so far? Let me know!<p>

** Radical, do I get happy face?


	2. Chap 1: Rising

**Disclaimer:** TMNT and associated characters belong to Eastman, Laird, and Nickelodeon. The "harvester" and his lady are mine...

A/N: Hey, guys! Just wanted to say a quick thank you for all the support I've gotten for this story! And also that any similarities between the story and Star Gate are purely coincidental! I've never actually seen the show, but did some research after reading the reviews. You should have heard my shrieks of horror!

I wanted to do homage to Bloodsucker from the Mirage comic's "River" meshed with some elements from Deadspace (per RadicalCriminal's request). That's where our little leechy friend has come from.

There's one kind of "ewww" part in this, as well as my first attempt at writing Casey. I know it's a bit too light-hearted of a convo, but there's some ugly stuff coming up...okay, I'm done!

Rising

How long she had remained buried in the earth, she did not know.

Her return had not been predetermined by some curse or any temporal pressure like other creatures claim. She had not awoken after so many years to wreck terror upon the world for so many days. There was no internal clock which would drive her back into the tomb. Her life supply had simply dwindled. She hungered. Therefore, she rose.

She cut through the earth as easily as any creature which dwelled beneath the surface. She had gone deep upon her last retreat from the world, as was her want. Far enough that she would be ensured privacy during her times of rest. But she sensed the changing environment as the earth dried near the surface. She plowed upward, tuning her body to track the prey which waited for her arrival.

Her hunt had been perfected over the millennia of her existence. She trusted in her technique. This was her game and, as far as she was concerned, she was the only player. She had never been challenged in taking what she wanted from them. She had absolute confidence in her goal and the execution of her -

Her snout slammed into a solid wall.

She let out a shriek and recoiled back into the arms of the soil, her eyes stinging. Her teeth snapped at nothing as she snorted and shook her head until the pain subsided. Bulbous eyes narrowing, she inched forward, cautiously, and set her nostrils to it. Her breath sent puffs of dust curling into the air. She touched her tongue to it and drew back with a low hiss.

It was unnatural stone, foreign to her world, and reeked of men. She could sense it spreading for countless miles in either direction. There were others connected to it, snaking their way through her domain in a labyrinth of overlapping tunnels. How she had come so far without encountering another could only be luck. She murmured her distaste for men's ingenuity and set to make her way around it when a thought struck her.

She dropped her attention to a crack in the cement, where a thread of fresh air was flowing into her own tunnel. She thought on it for a moment, debating whether or not it was worth placing a lure here. She could feel the surface was near, but could something be snagged here in the subterranean levels? After all, if humans had gone through so much trouble to place these unnatural paths beneath their feet, did it not mean they sometimes frequented them?

Perhaps...Even it was a dead end, what was one lure to her?

Her claws rose to trail along the skin of her opposite arm. One wicked hook poised, hesitantly, above the flesh of her bicep. Letting out a short sigh, she pierced her own hide and let out a wail as darkness spat onto the passage's floor. It splashed beneath her chest and sank into the soil, steaming and reeking of hot oil.

Her claw bit deep into her muscle, twisted as it found was it was searching for, and withdrew towards the gash, dragging a tiny line of squirming life with it. The tiny body let out a faint squeal as it was pulled into the damp air.

She pinched it tight between her claws and focused her mind upon the little form. She wrapped her will about the simple mind of the parasite, layering fold upon fold of reason and comprehension into its frame until it stilled within her grip. It listened to her intentions (as it had no thoughts to communicate with, intent was all she had for it) and understood them. It lived to feed, just as she did, and with that need came an unrelenting determination to find a source to support them. When she fed, it would be fed. That was all its mind could fathom at the moment, and all she needed to set her hunt into motion.

She set the worm before the crack she had found and, funneling her will into it, sent it into the breeze. Through their connection, she pushed down its instincts to retreat from open spaces and ignored the pain of cold air along its slick flesh. She pushed it onward until its probing head broken into the wide space of the human tunnel.

She could detect a water source nearby, though its smell was tainted by excrement. But no life. No pumping blood. The worm pulled itself free and lay upon the cement, unsure of what to do. She let out a breath of disappointment and considered abandoning it as she made her way higher. Then she settled herself down and angled the worm towards the curve between the wall and the floor.

She hadn't seen the world in an endless age of darkness.

She supposed she could wait a bit longer.

* * *

><p>She did not put much stock into time as she had absolutely no tethers to it. At least, as long as she could find a suitable crop for herself. So it was that she didn't know how long she had sat resting near that cement slab, waiting for some sign of life. But when it came, it hooked her mind immediately and she lifted her attention to the two voices which came echoing down the tunnel towards her hiding place.<p>

"I'm just sayin', I expect a new hockey stick from ya, nimrod!"

"How'ya figure that?"

"Well, seein' as I _broke_ mine over the _head_ of that goon who was trying to bust open _your_ head, I think that makes you responsible!"

The darker voice was still for a moment. "Nope, I ain't followin' that logic."

She shifted closer, pressing her own head against the cement to follow the conversation. The worm's ears were not ideal, and she had no interest trying to translate the muffled, booming sounds that assaulted its senses. It cried out to her in confusion and terror and she ignored it.

"Raph, do you have idea _who_ signed that stick?"

"Not a clue. Don' care ta find out. Maybe ya shouldn' have brought yer favorite hockey stick ta a fight, moron."

"That's not the point!"

She could feel their heartbeats approaching now and bent all her focus upon them. The first she recognized instantly as a potential vessel. It was a beautifully powerful heart with a wild rhythm. She swore she could taste him just by the thrum of his heart. His spirit was raucous and loud, tinted with sweat and blood and adrenaline. She swallowed in anticipation at cracking into such a young mind with a strong will like his. Men like him were -

Her thoughts were smashed into oblivion just then.

When she sensed the other.

Beyond the man's rushing veins, beneath his sweat-clotted clothing and the rumble of his voice, was something else. Something that was far more reserved and thus, far more poignant, not to mention lethal. It walked with smooth steps, almost silent but for the fact that he was relaxed in his present company. His heart was steady and sure. Self-confidence radiated ahead of him while arrogance trailed in his wake.

It was something she had not witnessed in all her long years.

Something she craved, instantly.

For resting underneath all that facade of calm and light teasing was cistern of thinly veiled violence. It was mixed with anger and injustice and regret and rage, all while being reined in by a sense of compassion and protectiveness. There were memories here. Memories not seen through the shallow eyes of men, but of something all together different.

She wanted them.

She pulled the worm away from the wall and sent it in a course to intercept their steps.

"I wouldn't be out my weapon o' choice if I weren't always havin' to look out for your turtle butt!"

"Ho!" the other creature barked. "_Who's_ always lookin' out for _who_ now? I've saved yer ass way more times than ya've ever had ta save mine!"

"That's rich! What kind of lame-ass score keeper are you using? I'm always bailing you out of fights! You just never pay attention!"

"That a fact?" the creature said with low amusement. Then there was silence as the man continued walking.

He paused and his steps suggested he had turned around. "Raph? Raph? Dammit! I told you, you can't do the disappearing ninja thing on me! It ain't fair! Raph!"

She listened to his nervous movements and the sound of the water gurgling. Then there was a faint swish of air and a loud thump that was the man hitting the ground. He let out a strangled yelp and then the other voice returned, laughing.

"Ya know ya gotta watch yer footin' in tha sewers, don'cha, Case?"

"Ow, man! I scraped up my damn hands!"

"Need April ta give 'em a kiss?"

She heard shuffling as the man pushed himself back to his feet. "Offer to have her kiss my palms covered in nasty sewer-water? Do you _want_ me to end up all alone? I can't believe you tripped me!"

"Oh, don' be a baby, Case. Yer fine." The creature snorted another laugh. "See? Who's got bett'a attention skills, me or you?" The man didn't answer and the creature gave a loud sigh. "Fine, whatev'a, I'll see ya tomorrow, righ'?"

"Nah, man," the man grumbled. "Got a date with April. I'll call afterwards if I got time."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," the other voice turned away and headed back the way he'd come.

She felt a flutter of alarm at the retreat of his heart, but then clamped down on her emotions. She turned her attention towards the man's receding form. He was strolling down the tunnel, heading towards a ladder which would lead him to the streets above.

He didn't notice the tiny worm which clung to the sleeve of the jacket he wore. It loosened its grip and fell into the safety of his turned up wrist cuff.

Arnold Casey Jones was about to have himself a very bad night.

* * *

><p>* Holy exposition, right? Set up chapter, sorry! It gets wilder, I swear!<p>

** May I hear your thoughts so far, please?


	3. Chap 2: Hooking the Bait

**Disclaimer:** I do not own TMNT or any of the associated characters.

Hooking the Bait

The keys to Casey's apartment jangled as he let himself in. He winced as he shook them free of the lock and then closed out some of the background noise filtering throughout the complex. During the day, he never heard it, but nighttime always seemed to amplify the muffled TV's, the traffic outside, and that relentless stereo in the bowels of the building. He swore the thing had been playing since the day he moved in.

He sighed and swung his golf bag into its reserved space on his couch. He sniffed, raking his fingers along his skull as he ambled into the kitchen. His hockey mask was set, reverently, upon the top of his refrigerator as he passed it. He checked his cupboards and let out a low whoop. The last of his Hostess snacks was shaken into his palm and he tore it open with his teeth. Then he poked his head into the fridge.

"Geez, I gotta buy some food."

He pulled a pop from his crisper and downed half of it strolling towards the back room. His jacket was shrugged into a heap next to the bed. Setting his can and half-eaten oatmeal cake on the nightstand, he stretched to his toes to brushed his fingertips along the ceiling. Then he pitched forward with a satisfied growl as his stomach bounced off the mattress. One arm folded beneath his cheek while the other dangled over the edge of the bed.

Outside Casey's darkened windows, the night slipped into a rain-soaked morning. The endless, shifting crowd was sluggish in the grey light. Most were hunched over fresh cups of coffee, moving quick against the wind. Others gave up and hailed cabs to escape the chill for a few blocks. Their eyes were downcast, focused on their own tasks for the day, ignoring those thousands around them. New York City went about its bustling day, never sparing a thought to the crawling malevolence which crept across the floor of one its own.

Casey's fingers hung just above the carpet and they twitched as cool flesh brushed them. The worm's mouth worked a line of mucus along his index finger and then inched up to his palm. Its light weight pressed his knuckles down. The body coiled and then stretched upward, its probing head wandering along the crevices of his hand.

His brow creased and the worm stilled when his fingers curled about it. He shifted, muttering against the dark as he drew his hand before his face. The other fumbled with the lamp switch before a sharp burst of light stung his eyes. Casey opened his hand and stared down at the thing resting upon it with bleary confusion.

Blue eyes finally focused. Then they widened.

The worm lifted the upper portion of its body and seemed to regard him.

"What in the...?"

The tip of the worm's head broke apart. Three jaws separated, opening with trembling anticipation. It lunged forward and sank miniscule teeth about the blue line than ran along Casey's wrist.

"Holy shhhh -!"

He bucked, he later claimed he damn near levitated, out of the bed. His arm gave two sharp and instinctual flicks, but the worm held firm. Drops of red broke along his skin. He dug at the creature, but his fingers slipped on its slick flesh.

"Get tha hell off'a me!"

Panting, he rolled across the mattress and made for the bathroom. He wasn't sure what he was going to once he got there, but it seemed like the place to go. He had just stumbled to the room when a sharp sting slithered into his vein. It pushed a few millimeters deeper (to Casey it felt as if it were drilling straight through his wrist) and wriggled, tenatively.

He let out a roar, falling against the doorframe. Heat flashed to his elbow and pulsed higher with every frantic beat of his heart. It slipped over his shoulder, spilling into his chest and down his spine.

A moan ground through his teeth as he watched the creature twitch and writh. With each pull it drew from his arm, it was growing. The faint designs along its flesh widened and lengthened as the rear end of it stretched back towards his fingers. And as it grew, a wicked stinger unfurled from its tail.

A scream was fighting up his constricted chest when the barb plunged into the center of his palm. It curved upward, securing its owner in place. Red dripped over the faded green tiles of his bathroom as he lurched into it. He cleared the counter, sending his toothbrush sliding behind the toilet.

He blindly reached for a drawer but his free hand froze an inch from the handle. Sharp pins prickled over his fingertips and then his arm dropped, completely numb. He swayed with a deep, truncated gasp, hunching over the sink. The weight of paralyisis bore down on his shoulders and his vision was rimmed in black.

Far too late, his panicked mind conjured up an image of his shell cell. The guys! Donnie would know what to do. He just had to get a hold of Raph...he had...he needed to...

He pushed away from the counter and collapsed, striking the back of his head off the bathtub as he went down. Fear like he had never known before sank cold fangs into the crook of his neck. He had survived the life of a vigilante, fought against highly trained and deadly ninjas, and had stared down the barrels of so many guns he hardly felt a flicker of concern from them these days. In all the scenarios he'd ever imagined about how he'd finally kick the bucket, he had never considered the option of dying all alone on his grimy bathroom tiles. With his only link of communication lying in his jacket an impossible twelve feet away.

Had he not been completely terrified, he might have felt insulted.

His back arched against a fresh burst of pain shot through his assaulted wrist. A line of foam spilled over the corner of his mouth as he collapsed. His breath dissolved into pathetic little hitches. His foot twitched, caught between the wall and his toilet.

The life drained out of blue eyes. Then he was sucked into darkness.

* * *

><p>Water sloshed a small tidal wave over the curb, dousing the legs of several couples who were waiting outside a small nightclub. The women shrieked in dismay as their escorts united in a chorus of slurs towards the driver. The bouncer threw his head back with a deep, booming laugh.<p>

He didn't notice the two shadows peeking down at the spectacle from the rooftop. The larger figure shook his head and listened to the music thrumming through the ceiling. His teeth flashed in the dark.

"I don' think they started yet."

"I can't believe you talked me into this," the other said, pinching the rim of his hat when the wind made a grab for it.

The first shadow mirrored his motion. A hint of incredulous gold glinted as the fabric flapped over his face. "Are you kiddin'? This is gonna be great! Tha band's killer."

"The last time you went to a _killer_ concert, we spent two days having to shout everything at you."

"Tha's part of tha experience! Ya pay ta end up like that."

Leonardo dropped his forehead into his palm.

"C'mon, Fearless, unclench. We'll get a seat in tha back, get'cha pansy-ass a Shirley Temple, and kill some brain cells for few hours. Ya deserve ta be fun for once."

"I'm _always_ fun!" Leo snapped, severely.

They glared at one another.

"I can' believe ya got that out wit' a straight face," Raph said in awe

Leo hid his smirk by looking away. He gave a loud sigh. "Fine. Just give me a minute."

He trotted to the rear of the roof, where the AC units were humming to themselves. He pried a loose side panel from one of them and blinked as the motor's heat blasted his chilled cheeks. Unlatching the strap which ran across his chest, he shrugged his katana's from his shell and began to slide them into the thin space beside the motor. His hand hesitated on the swords a moment longer, wary to part with them even for a few hours. Raph's sai were easily hidden within his disguise, Leo's swords were a bit harder to conceal. Not like Donnie's bo, but still, walking around with the hilts of katana's peeking over one's shoulders was apt to draw unwanted attention.

A loud bang twitched his inner ear and he rose to peek into the alley below. The side door to the neighboring club was pushed open and a young woman emerged, straightening her coat as she flounced into the cold. She flipped her hair out of her collar and her heels clicked loud in the quieter alley.

The door bounced off the wall again and a man appeared, looking wildly after her. He jogged after her and Leonardo's vision sharpened. Even in the rain smudge alley, details jumped at him. The small chain looped about the man's wrist, the tattoo which arced over his ear on his shaved skull, the leather vest which exposed his muscle to the wind. His face was set in determination and he picked up his speed to close the distance between them.

Leo pulled his swords back and took off along the roof, running silent above them. He jumped onto the ledge of the building, his hand closing about the hilt of his katana. The blade pulled free of its sheath with lethal grace. He bared his teeth with a hiss, coiling his legs to leap down upon the…

"Hey, lady!"

She turned, tugging her purse closer to her side. Her eyes widened.

He extended his arm. "You forgot your cell phone at the bar."

"Oh, my gosh!" she cried, clapping her hands over her mouth. "I would have been so dead without that!"

Leo sighed with relief and eased the blade back into its holster. He glanced aside as Raph appeared at his shoulder.

"What we got?"

"Good Samaritan."

"Ah…" Raph growled, jamming his sai back into his belt. "Samaritans," he added, scathingly.

Leo watched the couple part with a friendly handshake. He drew back, folding his arms with a light smile. Raph scowled at him. "Wha'? Wha's with tha look?"

The leader wrinkled his beak. "We've done some good, haven't we, Raph?"

Emerald brows shot up beneath the brim of his hat. "Say what?"

"Sometimes I wonder if we ever make any difference with all the things we do. If it's even worth it. If there are even still people who deserve us to fight for them." He looked down at the man as he strolled back to the club, whistling to himself. "I think I get so used to expecting to see monsters behind everyone's eyes…that it's kind of a shock when there's a real person there instead."

"Ah, crap, yer gettin' deep on me, aren't ya?" Raph shook his head. "Can' we have a night wit'out reachin' a moral epiphany of some kind?" He craned his neck to the darkened skies. "Is it so much ta ask fer?"

"With our family?" Leo cocked his head. "Yes."

Raph shoved his hands into his pockets. "Well, I s'pose that little one ain't so bad."

"C'mon, Raphie, you know it's true." His brother's eyes flashed, dangerously, at the nickname, but Leo's slight smile never faltered. "Say it. Say we've done some good for this city. The Shedder's finally gone. The Purple Dragons are off the street. Gang activity is at an all-time low...We've done good, haven't we?"

Raphael sighed and rubbed at the back of his neck. "Yeah, Leo. We've done some good."

Leo grinned at him and looked to the sky. Then a sheet of white flashed before his eyes. He stumbled back from the edge, clutching at his head. "Ow! What was that for?"

Raphael withdrew his fist from the hit. "'Cuz we were abou' ta bond an' I don' think my stomach could take it."

Leo shook his head, incredulously.

"'Sides," the larger turtle grinned, "Ever' time ya get that happy and contented look on yer face, something happens and we end up gettin' our shells kicked. Jes a preemptive strike, Leo. I'm lookin' out fer the fam here."

Leonardo rolled his eyes just as his brother's pocket began to ring. Raph pulled out his shell cell and peered at the Caller ID. "It's April…" he said, frowning. "She's s'posed ta be out with Casey." Gold eyes cut up to curious black. "If this is abou' a zombie horde on tha horizon, I'm gonna kick yer ass."

"Just answer it," Leo snapped, gingerly pressing his fingers to his skull.

"'Ey, April, how's the date?"

His smile faded into a scowl and he shot a look to Leo. "No, he ain't with us. He said he was goin' out with you." Leo cocked his head, curiously. Raph listened for a moment. "Two _hours_? Not a chance, he wouldn' leave ya hangin' like this, even if somethin' came up. Ya wan' us ta check on 'im, see if he's still at his place? 'Course he's fine...I'll give ya a call when we get 'im."

"I gather Casey is missing?" Leo asked as he flipped the phone shut. Raph nodded. "You worried?"

"I will be if the idiot fell asleep in front of his TV." Raph growled, "April's pissed. An' I'll be pissed if he makes us miss this show fer somethin' stupid." He nodded toward the club entrance.

Leo slid his swords back to their proper place with a thoughtful frown. "You never know, he might have a legitmate reason for not calling." He ignored the derisive snort he received and trotted to the end of the building. "Come on, Raph. Let's go find your friend."

* * *

><p>* Don't go, boys! Don't go!<p>

**Reviews, pretty please?


	4. Chap 3: Face to Face

**Disclaimer**: TMNT and related characters do not belong to me.

A/N: Hey, guys! Did a revamp on this chapter because, well...the original dialogue was keeping me awake at night. *twitch, twitch* So this is the improved Leo vs. Harvester interaction. Hope you enjoy!

Face to Face

_ In hindsight, even I must admit, it was not the most...profound performance in bringing down a vessel. In this game where my Lady has perfected her grace and stealth and patience in a seamless execution of her hunt, I went and wrestled a man to the ground, spitting and cussing and smearing blood all over the damn place. _

_ I felt kind of heelish about that._

_ But, in my defense, I had never participated in a collection before. So, I took comfort in the belief that practice would make perfect and all that crap. Besides, I was as big a victim as our dear Mr. Jones, you know?_

_ No?_

_ Imagine, if you will, how it felt the moment my jaws closed about his skin. It was as if...well, have you ever seen a downed wire snaking back and forth along the street? Sparks flying, everyone's trying to keep everyone else from getting near it, etc. Have you ever had the urge to push past all those barriers, grab the wire, and touch your tongue to the sparkly end? _

_ I imagine the feeling is similar._

_ Minus the sweet relief of death part, of course._

_ Heh._

_ So, even though Mr. Jones submitted to my venom with a scream building in his chest, I was there to finish it for him. His blood rushed over my mouth parts and preceded to tear my mind apart. My safe, basic instincts were stripped away. Any motivation my brain knew was peeled back and discarded. Even the knowledge my Lady had so generously lent me was shattered into nothingness._

_ Didn't feel great, gotta say._

_ And then, pummeling down my gullet as fast as I could gulp it, came the etchings of another mind. Images, snippets of thoughts and reason which translated the assault of sensations raining down on the man's body. My mind quelled at first before becoming intrigued and then infatuated. His understanding of the environment empowered my own. The static of sound, tastes, and, heaven help me, _sights_ which overpowered my suddenly came into sharp focus. In a few pain-laced, fire-driven moments, I had entered an entirely different world. _

_ I knew I was lying on a floor, weighed down my limbs which were not my own. I had a crick in my neck which I had not obtained. And I found myself staring the buzzing light bulbs above the grungy sink of a New York City bachelor. I felt the chill in his skin as we lay upon the bathroom tiles._

_ On the other hand, I had absolutely no idea who this guy was. I learned Mr. Jones' name later and not out of my own curiosity, either. As I lay there, I felt his subconscious shifting against my will. His helpless body twitched, trying to understand what had happened to it. But his thoughts, his memories, everything which encompassed _him_, that was shielded from me. Not meant for me. A forbidden fruit of sorts._

_ Hey, fine by me. I'm a meat and potatoes kinda guy, myself._

_ His muscles, most far larger than my entire being, suddenly contracted by my command. I rolled the massive frame to the side and onward to his stomach. I pushed him up and up and up so a powerful hand could grip the sink. His legs trembled as they flexed to bring us higher. And then I found his strange human face looking back at me in the mirror._

_ Elation shuddered through me and flooded his nervous system. The simple mouth curved, baring his teeth at my reflection. His shoulders bounced as a deep, bubbling laugh rocked us._

_ The wrist which bore my weight drew from the sink and settled against his neck. My natural sensors picked up on the stronger artery racing beneath the thin veil of skin. Hastily, I freed myself from the thin vein. My barb dislodged from his palm and sank into the flesh above his collarbone._

_ Nestling into the more favorable position, I examined the face before me._

_ It was nirvana, plain and simple._

_ I could have stood there forever. But as my thoughts cooled and I adjusted to the weight of this human form, something tugged at the back of my mind. A caress of my Lady's presence. A gentle reminder of the task still at hand. She purred the promise of a heartbeat so unlike our current prey. My own eagerness to begin this game of hers was drowned by her anticipation._

_ I grinned at myself and contented myself to wait..._

Raphael swore and trudged his way forward into the dark apartment. He walked as if he were fighting off gale-force winds. The stereo's bass strummed through his chest. He stumbled over heavy metal plates scattered over the living room carpet, hissing curses when his toes were stubbed. He reached the TV and fumbled with the ancient boom box on top of it.

_"Hey, hey, hey, that's what I say!_" The speakers shivered with the words. "_I can't get no...I can't get no...I can't get no satisfa -"_

The music cut off as Raph finally yanked the cord from the wall. He shook his head against the following silence. "Damn straight ya can't, Jagger," he growled. He turned back towards the open window, where Leo stood slowly lowering his hands from his ears.

"And to think, we nearly _paid_ to deafen ourselves."

Raph scowled and swept his arm towards the small dwelling. "This is an enclosed space, it ain't the same as bein' in'na club."

He saw Leo's outlined head tip back, mildly. "Aah."

Wrinkling his beak, he pointed across the room. "Jes check tha door, Fearless. There's a light ov'a here."

He worked his hand over the wall as Leo's soft footsteps moved from the window. Grinning, he flipped the switch and turned to face the apartment. Leo froze, his hand on the doorknob. Dark eyes made a slow trail along the floor. Raph stood across from him, his brow lifted high.

The refrigerator door hung open, releasing a wide semi-circle of smashed containers and smeared milk leaking from the linoleum to soak into carpet. The couch cushions had been thrown into the corners of the room. The backrest now sported a large slash, spilling foam over the skeletal remains.

The weight set, which Casey cherished almost as much as his weapons, was destroyed. The bench had suffered t he same fate as the couch. The bar had been thrown aside, punching a hole through the drywall near the window. Plates and dumbbells were scattered, helter-skelter, in every direction. It had been these that Raph had stumbled over on his trek to the stereo. Casey's DVD and CD collections had been flung across the room and now lay in shiny, stamped disgrace between them.

They glanced at one another. Leo jiggled the doorknob and shrugged. He stepped forward, folding his arms. "Door's locked. Think steroids finally fried your friend's brain?"

Raph snorted and looked aside. "Oi, Case! Ya here?"

Leo hissed. "Raph! Maybe we shouldn't be announcing ourselves, hey?"

"Wha' I was jes checkin' -"

Water rushed through the thin walls and Raph jumped from the hole which led to the bedroom. They listened to the splashes striking off a tub somewhere in that darkness. Glancing over his shoulder, Raph found Leo was right beside him. His eyes were sharp and glittering with suspicion. The leader nodded and flicked his fingers forward.

Raph lifted his lip and moved towards the dark room; his steps were as silent as those that followed. Together, the brothers eased the scarred door open and scanned the emptiness on the other side. Casey's sheets hung from his mattress, slithering into the arc of light that came from the bathroom.

Red dots trailed across the carpet.

"Fan-frickin'-tastic."

Familiar cold steel found the crook of Raph's fingers and he pulled his sai from his belt. His inner ear twitched at the soft hiss of metal moving against the leather, signaling that Leo's katana had also been freed.

They slipped into the room with Raphael in the lead. His nostrils were flared in the dark, his ears straining for any hint of something that did not belong. He sank lower; cautious steps crossed one over the other before his shoulder touched the wall. Craning his neck, he peered at the bathroom mirror but could only make out the slow shifting of the shower curtain.

Brow furrowed, the larger mutant stepped onto the tiles.

"Easy..."

Leo's voice was low and deeper than he'd ever noticed. A sharp thread traced up his neck and Raph glanced back. His brother was crouched and ready for a fight. His lone katana was drawn near his shoulder. The light hit half his face, casting the rest into the harsh shadow. His relaxed smile was long gone, replaced by the creases which formed along his forehead whenever he shifted into "leader-mode."

Raph froze, hand half-way extended towards the curtain. He'd seen the seamless transformation from Leo into Fearless hundreds of times. He knew the steely glint that hardened his older brother's gaze and the grim determination which overtook his face in these times. Yet...something was off. Something he could not pinpoint but, nonetheless, left an uneasy pit in his stomach.

Suddenly, he wished he was anywhere but in that bathroom.

Why, though?

Leo cocked his head, expectantly, and Raphael growled to stamp down the feeling. He was being ridiculous. Like some jumpy dame in one of Mikey's midnight monster flicks. He pry pull the curtain back only to find an empty tub as Casey came from behind them, laughing his fool head off.

Pretty extravagant gag to be coming from Casey...

"Raph?" Leo breathed.

He ripped the curtain aside.

Gold eyes widened at the bat swinging for his face.

He shot to the right, wincing as the mirror shattered into hundreds of sparkling flecks. Frigid water struck his neck a shoulders, slung from the soaked baseball bat. He spun, teetering precariously on the toilet bowl and gaped at his best friend. Casey was still poised from his swing, holding the weapon firmly against the mirror's busted face. He was rigid, standing with one foot on the tiles, the other braced in the tub. Beyond him, Leo had jumped to his full height, dark eyes huge.

"Casey, wha' tha hell?" Raph bellowed, stepping down. "Ya waitin' on friggin' Jason in there or wha?"

His friend rolled his head towards him. "Huh. Missed."

The bat pulled away, sending more shards into the sink.

"What'd ya do ta yer place, man?" Raph shoved his sai back into his belt.

Casey lifted a shoulder, moving to face the turtle head on. "I became bored."

Raph's eyes narrowed. "Ya got bored?"

The man tugged a shard from the bat's end and turned it, thoughtfully. A splash of light danced over his cheeks and then he let it tinkle to the floor. "You certainly took your time getting here." His free hand spread, helplessly. "Guy's gotta keep himself entertained."

Raphael straightened, warily. "Case, wha' the hell's goin' on?"

Blue eyes crinkled as Casey's smile deepened. The bat extended, slowly, towards the other's chest. Raph blinked, nonplussed. "I've been waiting on you, friend."

The turtle pushed the end aside. "Why'ya talkin' like -"

He ducked as the bat struck the tiled wall and slid to the side. Raphael dodged around his friend, dropping into a roll towards the door. His heel slammed against the frame as he tumbled back into the bedroom.

"Ouch, dammit! Are ya' _kidding_?"

Casey spun after him with a roar and then froze as a shadow stepped between him and Raphael. His face fell. Leo calmly crossed his blades before his chest. Black eyes glared, steadfast, into empty blue. Only Raphael caught the slight tremor in the leader's words.

"Easy, Casey. Let's just calm down."

The man's lips moved, wordlessly. The bat rose again, though now he seemed unsure of who his target was. His eyes flicked from the turtle on the ground to the one standing before him and back.

Raphael rolled to a knee, a thousand curses and questions boiling through him. Leo shot him a glance and steadied his stance. But Casey only fell back a step and looked towards the bath tub as if it had betrayed him somehow.

Allowing them to see it.

Raphael used Leo's shoulder to haul himself up. The length of a man's finger a just as thick, it lay nestled against their friend's neck. Slick, rust colored flesh was marred by brown stripes lining its segmented body. It contracted, coiling closer to tanned skin as if it could feel their scrutiny.

"Leo...wha' is that?"

Leo shook his head, minutely.

"_Two_," Casey spat, suddenly, wheeling to face them. "Two won't be enough!"

"Who are you?" Leo snarled, shifting his weight to the balls of his feet. He angled his shoulder between his brother and the man. Casey's eyes narrowed and he started forward, tightening his grip upon his weapon.

"Casey..." Leo's voice was tinted with warning. He retreated a step, his carapace striking Raph's plastron and pushing him further into the bedroom. "We don't want to fight you."

"All the easier, then," Casey growled before the bat came whistling around again. Leo jerked his neck back to keep his beak attached to his face. He hissed, touching his blades together in resolve.

"I ain't listenin', bro."

Leo looked aside. "Then get us some room to fight. I'll hold him off."

"Like hell I'm gonna leave ya ta -"

"Raphael!"

His brother vanished from his shoulder with a snarl. Casey watched him go and then slowly rolled his neck towards Leo. The turtle let out his own challenging growl and urged the man onward with a crook of his finger.

Casey burst from the bathroom, baseball bat leading the charge.

There was a blue sweep of blades and the bat thunked to the carpet in two pieces. Casey gaped at the severed handle in his hand and lifted incomprehensible eyes to Leo. Out in the living room, the couch groaned as Raphael shoved it towards the wall. The short coffee table broke over the top of it.

Leo pushed himself to his full height and slipped his swords back into their sheaths. His brought empty hands before his chest. "Look, we don't have to fight. I don't want to hurt my friend."

Casey's eyes narrowed. The handle was flung onto the bed.

"I just want to know what you're after."

He blocked the fist that came hurtling towards his face and then stepped aside as the human went hurtling past. Casey caught himself on the wall and spun around, his chest heaving with frustration.

"Why have you done this to Casey?"

A slow smile exposed a white line of teeth. "Servitude is its own reward."

Leo scowled, making a slow circle towards the door. "That's not an answer."

The first flicker of life shimmered behind those blue eyes. But instead of relief, Leo only felt a chill slink down his arms. His chest tightened as Casey pushed from the wall, chuckling deep in his throat.

"I'm completing a humble task for my most glorious Lady."

Leonardo swallowed, thickly. His dark eyes shot to the closet and then to the mattress as if he could sense another presence with them. Something hiding, ready to strike him from behind. The air grew heavier, pressing onto his chest as his fists lowered.

Casey smirked and leaned against the dresser, dropping his head with a laugh.

The next question came, cracking Leo's lips with deep crevices as he breathed the deepening malice. "W-hat d-does she w-want with C-C-Casey?"

What was happening to him?

The man looked up with a sly grin. He shook his head. "Oh, no. You were supposed to ask who She is." Leo flinched, his fingers sweeping across his plastron with sudden nervousness. Casey tipped his head and Leo watched as heavy beads of water broke from hanging strands of black.

"She doesn't want _this_," a hand slapped over Casey's chest. "No. She wants _him_."

He nodded towards the bedroom door.

Leo followed his gaze and spun back. "_What_?"

"Wants, hmm," Casey made a face. "I think _needs_ would be a better word. As in, She'll do anything she can to have him." His eyes narrowed with wicked delight. "That's why she sent me, friend."

Leo sucked at the air with new fear filling his gut. "T-then w-e've got a pro-blem...d-don't we?"

That smug grin was so out of place on Casey's face. "So you do."

He reached behind the dresser and emerged spinning a golf driver between his fingers. Leo's hands went for his katana, but it moved sluggishly to his command.

What was going _on_?

"Leo! Git out here!"

Raph...

He stumbled back and back, avoiding the swings aimed for his head. A lamp crashed into the opposite wall, and then the driver's head added another hole of its own. Leo fought to free his weapons, futilely, and made a desperate block. The driver met his outstretched palm and he barked out a cry.

Sharp pins consumed his fingers and wrist. He retreated, looking up just in time to catch the club across the mouth. His neck snapped and he felt his carapace strike the door before he fell into the living room. Strong hands buried into his armpits and hauled him over the carpet. He caught a flash of red above him.

"Ya two have a damn picnic in there or wha'?"

"Raph..." the name slurred over his lip through flecks of blood.

Raphael swore and jumped to his feet as the man came storming after them. He pushed from his brother's side and slammed into his friend. Casey let out a roar as he was pinned against the door, kicking and clawing at the turtle. Raph dropped back and step and threw all his weight into the man, bouncing his skull off the wood.

"Case, get a grip!"

Leo sucked in breaths which were free of the malignant presence. He staggered to his feet, swiping his wrist across his lips. "Raph...get away from..."

"We gotta git this thing off'a 'im, Leo!" he snarled, struggling to keep his friend in place.

"_Raphael_!"

He started at the fear in his brother's voice and shot a glance to him. Leo was swaying, his brow furrowed in desperation. Raph scowled at him and only looked back when all the fight vanished from Casey's body. He naturally turned to his friend's face and then his eyes fell to the worm pulsing so near to his own hand.

"Raphael..." Casey's voice was distant. "I'll remember that."

The top of the worm twitched and pulled from Casey's throat and the man went limp. Blood and dark, coagulated slime poured from the puncture mark left behind. His eyes rolled white and his dead weight pitched forward.

Raph grunted as he caught his friend, bringing his face inches from the tiny creature. It reared like a viper, the three mouth parts broke apart and quivered, soaked in red. Raphael heard Leo's shout from behind and saw the tiny form lung for his beak.

His arm came up with a silver flash. Cold metal rested against his cheek as he glared at the worm caught between the tines of his sai. He bared his teeth at the creature and shoved Casey back against the door.

"Leo, heads!"

He gave his wrist a sharp twist and shivered at the sickening pop of the barb dislodging from Casey's skin. The worm flipped through the air as the man toppled over him once more.

Leo danced backwards, his eyes following the writhing body like a receiver waiting for the ball. His katana rang as it was finally unsheathed. He found his mark and held it as the distance closed. But as he stepped backwards, his heel landed across the handle of a discarded dumbbell.

The weight rolled from beneath him, throwing his balance wild. His blade slashed, messily, before him and he swore he heard a faint scream as he went down. Something wet struck his shoulder even as his shell cracked off the thin carpeting. A spurt of black flew over his head.

Raphael looked over just as darkness burst against the white wall. The worm flopped, lifeless, to the floor. Leo jerked and struggled to rise from his shell, his legs kicking twice before falling still. Raph snorted and returned his attention to his friend.

He slapped at his cheeks and peeled an eyelid back. "'Ey, 'ey, Case, ya in there?"

"R-Raph?" Leo muttered behind him.

"I think he's okay, Leo. Git ov'a here."

Casey groaned and began to cough, weakly. Raph blew out a sigh of relief and shook his shoulders until the man lifted his head.

"Case, ya a'right? How many fingers ya see?"

He spread his two main digits before the other's nose. Casey blinked hard in attempt to focus, and then he slid to the slid, smacking his shoulder off the carpet. Raph winced at the angle which his neck was hanging and then shrugged.

"Yeah, good. Sleep it off, man." He thumped the vigilante once on the shoulder and rose. "'Ey, Leo?"

His brother had finally gained his feet and now stood before the splatter mark. Raph frowned and crossed towards him. Leonardo cocked his head and sank to one knee, leaning over the severed body. The worm's barb jabbed, helplessly, at the air. Black liquid seeped over the dingy carpet.

Raph wrinkled his beak. "Ugly little suck'a, ain't it?"

"Disgusting," Leo whispered. "Absolutely vile."

"Whadd'ya think it is?"

The leader tipped his chin, thoughtfully. "I'd have to say...inevitability."

Raphael glanced to him. "Say what?"

Leonardo let out a soft huff of laughter and then spun on his toes. Raphael jerked back, instinctually, so the five pound plate in his brother's hand only clipped his jaw as it swung by. Fire lanced down the turtle's neck. His hands flew to his mouth just in time for a yellow flash to sear his vision.

A detached emptiness filled his sinuses as he dropped to his knees. He clutched at the gash slicing over the crown of his head. White pain stung between his eyes and he felt the floor shiver as the plate dropped beside him.

Leo's fingers entangled into the tails of his mask and Raph's neck was yanked backwards.

Gold eyes cracked towards his brother.

"Leo...wha'...?"

"Do you have _any_ idea how much that _hurt_?" Leonardo hissed.

Raph gaped at him, confused. Then, his stomach dropping, he lowered his focus to the skin just above the leader's plastron. Black tar slipped from leaf-green skin over the yellowish plating. It was pouring from the other severed end of the worm.

It's head was buried in the curve of Leo's neck.

Cruel amusement crinkled the dark eyes which no longer belonged to his brother.

"Oooh, now we are in trouble."

Leonardo's voice cackled through the apartment.


	5. Chap 4: Your Acquaintance

**Disclaimer:** TMNT and associated characters do not belong to me in the least.

**A/N**: *Choke, sputter* Can it be? An update? I don't know what happened over the holidays, but every scene that I've fleshed out over the last two months has gone directly into the trash. Probably justly so, but it has been infuriating to see this time go by with nothing productive to show for it...*sigh*. Hopefully, this chapter is a sign that my stupid self-doubt is finally gone. _Stupid_ self-doubt.

*Oh, and small suggestion in case you're eating and reading at the same time...may want to set it aside once Leo's eyes roll back. Just a maybe...

Your Acquaintance

Raphael gaped past the white veil of pain searing his eyes. A dial tone of shock had deafened his ears as he took in the vile curve of his brother's mouth. Red seeped from Leonardo's busted lip into the tight lines between his teeth. He wanted to thrash against the grip which kept his head too far backwards, but he seemed paralyzed by the distant sensation of blood trekking towards the kinked folds in his neck.

Even if the shot to his head hadn't left him sluggish and his vision crippled with hazy shadows, he doubted the sheer ludicrousness of the situation would have allowed a break for freedom. Here he was, kneeling in his best friend's apartment while being held hostage by his own brother. The same brother he should have been mocking right now for being too uptight to be in a night club.

Instead, Leonardo loomed over his second-in-command. His free hand was propped on his knee as he barked out his maniacal laughter. And all Raph's muddled brain would allow him to do was flick his eyes from the thing suctioned to his brother's neck, to the splatter mark across the wall, and over to Casey's prone figure.

He started when Leo's teeth finally snapped shut, cutting off that unnatural cackle. His eyes gleamed as he grinned at the younger warrior. A stark line of foam dribbled from the corner of his mouth.

"L-Leo?" Raph grunted, hoping to see some spark of his brother in the vacated irises.

Leonardo wrinkled his beak and clicked his tongue. "Not so much."

"How...how d'ya...?"

"How could I have made the transfer without you noticing? Oh, that's all on you, buddy." Raph shivered as Leo's darkened voice flowed between them, smooth and abhorrent as poisoned wine. Fingers tightened at the back of his skull, hoisting him higher onto his kneepads. Leo's dark eyes shot to the side before he leaned in. "Next time, you may want to note the _tone_ when someone calls your name. When are they verifying your safety?" His head tipped, thoughtfully. "When are they _begging_ for help?"

Heat flashed through Raph's spine. "You son of a -"

"Ha!"

He was flung aside. The sharp bite of a rug burn brushed over his shoulder before he rolled to keep himself right side up. His vision wavered, sloshing the world around him even as he lunged to one knee. He didn't get a chance to do more, however, as Leo's foot connected with the center of his plastron, sending him into the kitchen bar.

Wood buckled as his weight met the underside of the cabinets. Pans and shelving burst from the cupboards on the other side, breaking his thoughts as they clanged and rattled to the linoleum. Something, a pot lid maybe, echoed through his head as it wavered across the floor.

Grunting out a curse, he fought and kicked to free himself.

The worm rocked back on his heels, rolling Leo's neck into a luxurious stretch. His shoulders rotated like a business man testing out a new suit. Extending his arm, he flexed thick fingers before curling at the elbow so he could admire his new bicep.

"Nice," he drawled. Dark eyes snapped back to the ninja. "But not what we ordered."

Raphael spat dust and bits of wood to the side. He shoved one of the dented barstools out of his way and sent a withering glare in his brother's direction.

The creature strode forward, wiping the foam from his chin in a smooth stroke from his thumb. His steps were heavy and foreign as he crossed the living room. Keeping his eyes on the approaching figure, Raph slammed his hand onto the counter, bracing his legs to gain his feet.

They both paused, studying each other with disdain. Raphael's lip curled as the worm closed his lips about Leo's thumb and sucked the digit clean.

"I mean, _really_, Raphael," he smirked, easing to his haunches. "How am I to explain this to Her? My Lady is a gracious being...merciful as She is beautiful, you understand. But _this_?" He jabbed a finger at Leo's beak. "This isn't going to be winning me _any_ brownie points."

Raphael blinked. "Who tha hell is _she_?"

His stomach lurched as Leo's mouth erupted into a bright smile. "Oh, this one knows how to play!" His brow fell. "But I've already discussed Her intentions with your friend here." He rose, tapping Leo's chest. "Not my fault if you weren't in attendance."

Raph opened his mouth only to catch a kneepad off the underside of his jaw.

His side cracked against the counter. A grunt of pain was muffled as his own teeth sliced the interior of his cheek. His fingers spread across the laminate to keep him from going down again. Raph set his cheek against the cool ridge of the counter, grinding his teeth as blood pooled against his molars.

The worm twirled on his heels to lean against the counter himself. His words were soft and hideous as he mused. "How am I to contend with Her disappointment, heh?"

"Where's...Leo?" Raph snarled through his aching jaw. "Wha'...ya do...ta 'im?"

"Leo?" His brother's head tipped back with sudden understanding. His hand swept along his side, "Oh, you mean this? That's what you're worried about?" He snorted and rolled to face the turtle, propping himself onto his elbow. "I'm facing a whopper of a dilema here, Raphael, and I don't feel that you're connecting with the severity of it."

His eyes flickered when the other answered him with silence. Glancing down, he barely registered that the darker fingers had suddenly snapped shut.

Raphael's punch came in a sharp and undignified right hook which landed, solidly, into his brother's temple. Leonardo stumbled and struck his hip on the carpet. Stunned, his hand flew to his head. He looked up just in time for Raphael to barrel into him, sending them both across the floor on Leo's shell.

"Get off'a him! Git off my brutha!"

The worm hissed, twisting beneath the furious warrior's onslaught. His leg came up, planting his heel on the lower plates of Raph's abdomen. Rolling back onto his shoulders, he pitched Raph's weight up and over his head, feeling the floor shiver as the larger turtle slammed to his own shell. They were back on their feet in a flash, Raphael's growl rumbling between them.

"How?" he demanded as the worm calmly brushed at Leo's arms. He jabbed a finger towards the wall. "How can ya even be alive? Half'a ya's lying there on the damn floor!"

A slow smirk graced the other's mouth.

"It's called regeneration, my friend." He lifted his shoulder, coyly. "What can you do?"

Fierce eyes dropped to the shadow of flesh coiled into his leader's neck. "Regen..." Raph scowled, his hands returning into fists. "Don' matt'a…I got'cha off my friend. I can git'cha off my brutha…"

"Without _my_ help?" Leo's brow quirked. "I'm curious to see how you'll pull that off." He dropped into an eager crouch. "After all, you wouldn't hurt one of your own, would you?" The shark-like grin reappeared, distorting Leonardo's features.

Something flickered behind the golden eyes as he took the smile from his leader's normally stern face. Leo's weight rocked from foot to foot and he shook his hands loose, waiting for the attack to come. His gaze shifted higher, above Leo's shoulder, where the hilt of his remaining katana rested against his back, unnoticed. The other still lay upon the floor where Leo's freedom had been stolen. How could this thing being sharing Leo's head and not go for his swords? They should have been a given if he wanted…

Raph looked at Leo's stance again and his heart gave a jolt.

This guy didn't have Leo's skill. He didn't have Leo's knowledge. He had the body, but not the mind. The shots he'd already given had been cheap and delivered brutally, exerting energy Leo never would have wasted. He liked to talk…because he didn't have a clue how to fight.

Not like Raphael could.

The sneering grin on the leader's face faltered as Raphael's hands drifted upward, towards his belt. He retreated a pace as steel slid free of leather. "You won't."

"Whatev'a happens ta Leo," Raph muttered, glaring at the creature through the tines of his weapon. "s'long as yer gone…I think he'll git ov'a it."

Soulless eyes widened.

The sai cut between them with a clean whistle. The worm leapt, jerking his hips back as the metal sliced an inch within his plastron. Grinding his teeth to keep his head clear, Raphael closed the distance between them, delivering an unblocked punch to his brother's jaw. He ignored the twist in his gut when the creature's dark gaze shot to him, willing himself to believe that it wasn't his brother's disbelieve being directed towards him.

His weapon flipped in his palm so the hilt was now leading the charge. Leo's arm came up, catching Raph's forearm with his own. The sai's pommel shivered a few inches from the lighter colored temple. Empty eyes scowled with disdain.

"This is your plan?"

Raph tipped his head. "Won't be fightin' if Leo's out cold, will ya?"

He twisted, bringing his heel around to Leo's side. The worm stumbled before catching his balance with a derisive snort. "I don't think so. I think you're stalling for time…" He jerked his neck aside as the blade whisked by. "A better idea, maybe. In fact, I…"

It choked on the next words, blinking in confusion.

Raphael didn't notice. He dropped his shoulder and rammed into the other's chest. Leo was taken off his feet, landing on his shell next to the apartment door. Raphael landed on his haunches, bracing himself with his free fingers.

"I don't _do_ better ideas," he snapped. "Leo's the plan guy, I jes…Leo?"

He straightened at the groggy groan which came from his brother. Leonardo rolled to his shoulder, lifeless eyes scanning the carpet in fear. Phlegm rattled beneath each breath he sucked in.

"Leo, wha' are ya doin'?"

Wheezing, the leader's fingers wiped through the wide line of tar gliding down his chest. His teeth chattered as he brought his shivering hand before his nose.

"Heh…heh…"

Raphael's eyes widened as a harsh smile overtook his face. His sai spun back into its holster and he folded his arms. "Guess tha' _regeneration_ card ain't as hot as ya though', huh? Wha's it gonna do 'bout that little leak'a yers?"

"Mess…mess…hesssssss…"

Raph shivered, his nose wrinkling to hear his brother's voice hissing out the whispers. He sank to a knee, blinking back the pull of weariness coming from his own bleeding head. "Wha' ya say?"

"_Messis_…" Leonardo breathed, glassy eyes widening.

The air around them seemed to contract and Raph pushed back, looking around wildly. He could feel eyes on them coming from everywhere and nowhere. Every shadow spied on him from the corners. But every corner was empty.

"Wha' the…" He looked towards Casey, who was still sprawled halfway between his living room and bedroom and motionless. He flinched as the light seemed to ripple just beyond his peripheral, but was unable to catch the anomaly as he turned.

"_Messis_," Leo continued as his cruel smirk transformed into half-drunk adoration. "_Messis. Messis. Mess…"_

"Leo, shut-it!" Raph snapped, spinning back to him. His brother had pushed to his knees and collapsed into a sitting position with his shell against the wall. The word kept coming, spreading his smile wider each time it passed his lips. Raphael's skin was crawling, his own breath ragged and weak as he helplessly paced, waiting for the unseen presence to make itself known.

And then…relief. The pressure lifted from the room. He swore the light bulbs shone brighter.

"Tell me...what I..." Leonardo's voice was deadly soft as his eyes rolled towards the ceiling…and then onward into the back of his skull.

"Leo!"

Raph crossed the space between them in a flash, grabbing his brother's shoulders.

The leader's nostrils flared, drawing his shoulders and Raphael's hands towards the curve of his jaw. A low, resonating drone rumbled deep within his throat. His jaw fluttered open and shut, like a fish drowning on the air.

"Leo," Raph's stomach churned to jelly. He cursed to himself, wishing Donnie and Mikey were there. Maybe it was selfish, but he really didn't want to be facing this nightmare alone. "Leo, wha' are you doin'?"

He hated how weak the question sounded.

Leonardo's legs kicked straight, slamming the back of his skull off the wall. He let out the slightest exhale and then continued sucking air into his lungs.

Mouth dry, Raph looked around the apartment, still very much aware of the sensation of eyes on his shell. "Leo, this you?" he whispered, gruffly. "Ya fightin', Fearless? Ya fightin' this filthy slug?"

Lord, he hoped so…

Only a sliver of white shone between the other's cracked eyelids. Lowering his focus, Raph could see the worm itself was contracting, withering in on itself. Rust colored flesh coiled tighter to green skin.

Raph grit his teeth, fighting down his own revulsion. He looked between his brother's twitching face and the tiny body attached to his neck. This was his chance. The thing was preoccupied with whatever the hell was happening to it. He could get it. He could get it. He could get it…

His hand cramped in revolt.

It had to be a damn bug.

"Git it off, Raphie-boy," he snarled. "Git if off'a him…"

He lunged for the vile little creature.

Leonardo's hand shot up, closing his palm about the other's wrist. Raph froze.

Empty eyes flew open with a final, high-pitched breath.

Red shot from the severed body, splattering Leo's front with his own blood.

Raphael shouted as warmth sprayed his outstretched fingers.

"Holy shhhh -!"

Leo's blood…son of a…Leo's _blood_.

Before his brain could move beyond that one fact, he felt his brother's weight shift. The worm twisted his legs beneath him and kicked off the wall, toppling the kneeling turtle back to the floor. Raph's head struck the thin carpet and stars burst before his eyes. Leo's weight settled onto his plastron, leaning over him as red intertwined with the black river gliding down his chest. Spots of both dripped onto Raphael's neck.

"Oh, now that's unfortunate," it sneered. "You're gonna wind up with a concussion yet, mi amigo…"

He stared (his limbs numbed from shock and the hit to his pounding head) as the blood congealed with the tar flowing out of the worm's body. In seconds, the fatal wound was sealed. The worm's flesh began to bloat as it continued to pull at Leo's neck.

This couldn't be happening…

"So much trouble, Raphael," Leo's twisted voice, if possible, had grown even darker. He cupped his hand and ran it up his own plastron, collecting the mess in his palm. Then he set the heel of his hand on Raph's forehead, smearing cooled tar and warm blood against his skin. Raph's neck tightened as he tried to hold in his scream.

"Just think, if you had just held still, all of this could have been avoided.

Raph glared through the enclosing darkness around his vision. His eyes burned as he took in that hideous and familiar face. The face of a maniac. The face of his brother.

Where the hell was Leo?

"Not that I'm complaining," Leo smirked. No, Raph shook his head, no, the _worm_. It was the worm talking…

He really wished Donnie was there.

"Getting _cut_ in _half_," it hissed, pressing down harder on his forehead. "Such a _sensational_ experience…maybe I can return the favor to you if my Lady pleases…"

Raph spit into his face. The worm flinched in surprise. The turtle tried to ignore the wrenching in his gut as the hatred cleared, briefly, from the leader's face. He didn't know how long they'd been fighting, but it felt like an eternity that he'd seen even some semblance of his brother on that face. Then it was gone, and the parasite was dabbing at his cheek with a knuckle.

A soft and dangerous huff came from above. "Like I said, so much troub -"

He hesitated and looked aside.

"Fore!"

Raph felt the gust of the golf swing and suddenly Leonardo was gone. Raph blinked a few times before twisting to the side. A set of denim legs stood between himself and his sprawled sibling.

"Casey?"

Leonardo pushed himself up, his hand pressed against his temple. Dark eyes seared towards the human. "Now, _where_ did you come from?"

Casey's eyes flashed. "I _live_ here, dickweed."

"Case…" Raph groaned, fighting to get himself up again. "Not…Leo…"

"Kinda figured," the man replied, widening his unsteady stance. He held his golf club before him as if it were Excalibur itself. He was pale and sweaty and looked as if a sneeze from down the hall could topple him, but his eyes were fierce and ready to fight.

"Insignificant…" Leo muttered, rolling to his feet. "We're done with you!"

Blue eyes narrowed. "Really? 'Cuz me and my friend here," he swung the club, eagerly. "We got some things ta discuss wit' ya."

Leo's lip began to curl, his shoulders rising with fury, and then he froze. He tipped his head to the side, as if listening to something far away. He closed his eyes and shook his head.

"Actually…" he relaxed, "Looks like a change in plans, fellas."

Raphael stepped forward, his brow furrow. "Wha' are ya…"

The worm bolted for the open window, slashing the curtain aside as he ducked through.

"Leo!" Raph bellowed, sprinting after him. "No, no, no!"

He went through the opening himself, only to catch a heel across his cheek. His shell slammed into the window's frame and he sat down, heavily, upon the sill. The worm swung off the fire escape's stairs as dainty as a gymnast to land beside him.

Hooking his finger beneath the turtle's chin, he forced their eyes to meet. The creature winked. "Be seein' you, Raphael."

Then he turned and swung himself over the railing, vanishing towards the street below.

Head swimming, Raphael panted out his exhaustion and fear. He shook his head, refusing to take his eyes off the spot where his brother had just been.

"Leo…"

Stumbling steps finally drew his attention. Casey stuck his head out of the opening beside him. "Raph? You okay?"

"Casey," he growled, rolling his neck to look up at his friend. "What the hell d'ya get us in'ta?"

The man's face was hollow as he sank to his elbows on the sill. He turned his wrist towards the street light, revealing the two black holes piecing his flesh.

"Freakin' got me, man…" he whispered.

They sat, staring out over the alley and listening to the distant, ceaseless wail of car horns.

Finally, a gruff voice broke their silence. "Case…I need a favor."

Unfamiliar, haunted eyes turned towards him.

Raphael sniffed and pushed himself back into the apartment. He set his hand against the wall to keep himself on his feet and looked to the black stain wiped across the pale paint.

"Ya got a jar I can borrow?"

* * *

><p>* Reviews, critiques, questions, concerns, I like them all, you know! Was my self-doubt warranted? Good grief, fight scenes are nerve wracking...<p> 


	6. Chap 5: Respite

**Disclaimer**: TMNT does not belong to me...

*Sheepish* I did not realize it has been 6 months since I posted for this. The worm's voice went missing, I found it at Mount Rushmore last week. Always the last place you look, right?

Respite

_All in all, I'd have to say that round two went rather well._

_ I felt the sting of impact as the balls of Leonardo's feet met concrete. His weight pitched us forward. An electrical pulse shot through the nerves entwined by my proboscis and set it on fire, searing a path to the back of my brain. I snaked a hand out to steady his frame and then grinned at the sight of those thick fingers splayed before him._

_ Damn, two hosts, two fights, and the rush was just as potent._

_ I didn't enjoy this power, exercising such authority over these massive bodies. Packed with their bones and organs and muscle and blood. No, no._

_ I freaking loved it._

_ Peering through my borrowed eyes, I found that the world had turned clouded and hazy. Smeared at the edges. Poor old Leonardo. It seemed his superior vertebrate body was giving out on him. One too many knocks to the head, I suspect._

_ Be still my bleeding heart. _

_ His skull was pounding from the blow Raphael had dealt to us, leaving an irritating whine deep inside. Irritating, but manageable. I rolled his shoulders, feeling the tug of exerted muscle all down his sides and to the hips. I was getting signals from everywhere, begging for a chance to rest and recuperate. Personally, I felt invigorated, and seeing as I was the one calling the shots, well..._

_ Beneath the caked gore that had once been my midsection, my wound had fully healed. What precious blood of Casey's that I'd lost was being replenished from Leonardo's stores. He could spare it and, judging from the rank compassion I'd seen in his eyes, I'm sure he would have been more than willing to oblige my need._

_ If I had cared to ask him, that is._

_ Twisting that wonderfully powerful neck I looked back up the fire escape. I had expected a departing bellow from Raphael, or at least I thought they might be leaning over the top of the handrail. I wanted to give them a final peek at their friend before whisking him into the night. Nothing doing, however, because I saw neither turtle or human through Leonardo's fading vision. _

_ Jeez, and they thought _they_ were dealing with a heartless bas -_

_ The left side of my brain was snagged, sharply, downward as if caught by a hook. I stumbled to the side, reeling to keep us upright. Leonardo's eyes sent a torrent of water down his cheek as it punched into his own head. _

_ It was the same irresistible tug I had felt up in the apartment. The flare of pain was immediately followed by a burst of pleasure opening below Leo - beneath _my_ belly._

Come back. Come back to me now.

_ Her voice hummed through me, shivering through my veins and dousing me with longing. She needed me. I need Her just as badly. My knees quaked at the thought of returning to Her presence. I had failed to obtain Raphael for Her, but nonetheless, the wrong body was better than no body at all._

_ Right?_

Come now.

_ But how? She had been underground when we parted and from the knowledge I siphoned from both my hosts, the world beneath the city was immense. Huge. Beyond either of their reckoning. How was I expected to find Her?_

I will show you the way...

_ I felt the mind beneath me flinch as Her essence blossomed within us. He recoiled from the invasion of Her strength as She shifted beyond Her connection within me and anchored Herself in the depths of his brain. I shoved his naivety aside, clearing the way for Her to contact his visual cortex. _

_ The alley before us shimmered with something like heat rising in the distance. Undulating waves folded down and rolled over one another, condensing in and in until they formed a tight, roiling line of power stretching away from us._

Follow me, love_._

_ Leonardo's chest jerked forward as if being drawn by a magnet. _

_ I grinned at that. If he insisted..._

_ I hauled my exhausted puppet to his feet. His legs buckled beneath his weight but I was there to yank him upright again. I tightened the hold over his motor control. He was going to Her, by his strength or my own._

_ I tracked that near invisible beacon into the night._

* * *

><p>He took him.<p>

He just...took him away.

And Raphael hadn't been able to stop it.

He swore every step sent a hammer's blow through the ugly knot jutting from the top of his head. His palm slid flat along the brickwork, guiding him whenever the sewer decided to make a sudden lurch to the left. Pausing to let out a soft groan, he dropped his head and waiting for a bout of nausea to retreat from the back of his throat. His tongue felt like it was being marinated in his own saliva.

But he didn't have a concussion. No, sir. None of that bull was happening here.

He gave his head a hard shake and refused to acknowledge the sloshing sensation which cut between his ears. His weight fell forward and somehow, he feet were able to catch up with his momentum. The mantra thrummed through his thoughts again, the same three facts that had plagued him from Casey's apartment.

Leo was gone. He had been taken. He hadn't stopped it.

Raphael's grip tightened around the small glass he had clutched to his chest. The jam jar they had found rolling around on Casey's kitchen floor had been hastily scraped of its ancient contents. The bottom half of the vile parasite, complete with nasty stinger, was now bobbing around in a few inches of tap water. The sight of that little bit of insignificant flesh felt like a slap every time he glance down.

Wedged between his arm and side, and carefully wrapped in his own trench coat, was the katana Leonardo had dropped when the worm had taken control. The only piece of evidence he had that his brother had actually gone out with him that night.

He leaned, heavily, against the wall and used it to round a corner. His heart fell with relief as the familiar pipes and bricks which camouflaged the entrance to the lair. Trudging forward on autopilot, his hand went for the hidden keypad long before he was within reach of it.

Inside, the small living area was being overpowered by rapid gunfire and a furniture-quaking explosion. Every one of the dozen plus televisions were split down the middle, dancing with two separate views of a war torn military base. The light of the explosion lit up the area, revealing the two turtle perched on the couch's backrest.

"Ha! Ha!" Michelangelo crowed. "You are welcome."

"Sensei's gonna get after us about the volume again," Donatello growled, lightly. His thumbs flew madly over his controller. "Why aren't you waiting for me? We're supposed to stay together!"

"You're slow, bro."

"I am not! I just need to find another cartridge of ammo - _no_!" The inventor twisted aside, clicking away as a horde of aliens filled his screen.

"Slow _and_ loose with your ammunition," Mikey clucked his tongue with disapproval. "You're so not cut out for this type of warfare, Donnie."

"Says you."

"Who's getting eaten alive right now and who's chilling up on Level 5, maintaining the peace?" He flicked at a few buttons. "Aaaand those sentries are down, look at that." He glanced to the cushion between their feet. "Are you ever going to eat that cookie?"

"Don't touch the Pinwheel. Why won't they die?"

"But its staring right at me."

They started as the front door hummed to life and both turned towards it as red ran down Donnie's half of the screens. Mikey's teeth flashed into a reflexive grin. "Hey, the band couldn't have been that bad. Why are you guys -"

Don's brow furrowed as the single silhouette ambled, drunkenly, into their home. Raphael came to a stop just past the kitchen, swaying where he stood and scowling at the far wall.

"Raph?" Their older brother flinched and turned glassy, distant eyes towards them. Donnie flicked his wrist in a half-way. "Hey."

And then, Raphael was headed for the floor.

The younger pair launched themselves over the couch. A glass jar clattered to the cement as Raphael hit his knees and went rolling away. Donatello slid in next to him as he slumped forward, deftly turning the collapse into a more gentle descent.

"Raph?"

"Raphie!"

"H-he's gone," Raph muttered, thickly. "He took 'im..."

Michelangelo hovered above them, anxiously, as Donnie cradled their brother upon his knee. Light brown eyes widened at the knot jutting from the crown of his head. A line of crusted blood seeped from the angry gash which cut across it. "Holy, Raph," he breathed. "Mikey, get Splinter."

The youngest vanished as Donatello leaned to pushed an emerald eyelid back. "Look at me, bro, come on."

Raphael flicked his eyes towards him, sluggishly. His gaze fixed on Donnie's mouth, watching his brother's teeth flash beyond his beak.

"Raphie, where's Leo?"

* * *

><p><em>I found Her in the dark.<em>

_ The magnetic pull which had brought me so far into the dark underbelly of New York had not lessened. If anything, it only grew stronger, tugging strands of excitement through Leonardo's core. Tingling shards traveled to his fingers and toes. We had made our way down endless tunnels and echoing turnoffs, on and on until I came to the shattered boards that had once been a blockade._

_ The air was damp and heavy with the smell of rotted wood, but even that was overpowered by Her scent. I filled my lungs with that familiar bouquet and set Leonardo's eyes and nose to burning. Grinning, I started forward. My steps broke into stagnant pools and ruptured the silence of the abandoned tunnel. While I still had light to go by, I noticed the wall at my side._

_ Roots of darkness spread along the bricks, infused with threads of brilliant blue. Curious, I reached to touch one of the pulsing veins. Leo's hand snapped back as a sharp nip struck his fingertip and sent a hot surge to my shoulder. A large bead of blood swelled from the pad of his finger and I hurriedly set it to his tongue._

_ Waste not, right?_

You've come.

_ My vision swam as Her whisper filled me. Damn, if She wasn't magnificent._

_ I felt another light pull through my head and there I was, standing in the entrance to Her den. Gazing down the shorter burrow, I saw the back of it was filled with the same, ethereal blue. It was down there, by the light of Her own being, that I first beheld the wonder of my Lady._

_ And help me, if I did not love Her._

_ I stumbled, shivering in pure rapture as She surveyed what I had brought. Her great weight shifted, bring Her around to fully face us. Her mouth parted, sending the heat of Her breath across us._

He is not the one I chose.

_My stomach fell with apprehension and with that small slip of unease, I felt my host's subconscious buck against me. I picked up the sensation of recognizing one was in a nightmare and the attempt to rouse itself back into reality. I couldn't help but laugh as I kicked the door shut on his stirrings._

_ Chump._

But, he is beautiful, _She continued, reclaiming my attention. _Bring him.

_I eased closer until my vessel's beak was lingering just before Her bowed head. Her teeth separated, allowing Her tongue to descend. Just as glistening and black as the world around us, its heat passed over the turtle's midsection and slid into a patient, upward arc. The flaking crust of our mixed blood smeared over Leonardo's chest. I twisted the turtle's neck, granting Her access to my own battered flesh._

_ She repeated the motion, cleansing us of the sweat and gore we'd collected through the night. As much as I reveled in the attention I couldn't help but notice the prickling revulsion gathered at the base of the turtle's spine. Anger coursed through me and I leered towards the pathetic corner of Leonardo's mind where his essence dwelled. _

_ He didn't approve of Her._

_ And I couldn't have that now, could I?_

_ As Her tongue passed over us yet again, I turned and ran his own against the hot muscle. It slid across his face, leaving a thick and cooling track of saliva along his cheek. I grinned as his gag reflex kicked in, stretched his jaw until it ached, and continued to lap at Her, forcing him to swallow every drop of sputum I could collect._

_ She withdrew, sending a gust over us from Her nostrils. She considered us with an appraising eye, like a connoisseur savoring the taste of a new wine._

Give him to me.

_I blinked at the command, puzzling at it even while my host's body was set into motion. My right hand moved to the opposite arm and slowly dragged down the pad guarding his elbow. Both it and his wrist guard landed in the damp soil between us. My arm was extended, offering itself palm up before Her. _

_ My Lady's mouth broke into a smile and She let Her tongue fall again. This time, though, something rose from the dark flesh. Something white and thin and hollow at its tip. It twitched at the cold air much like my own barb had back in Mr. Jones' apartment. There was a similarity but even I must admit that the sight of it was...unnerving._

_ I watched as the flexible flesh encircled Leonardo's wrist and coiled its way higher. I couldn't stop my neck from craning away as Her fang trembled against green skin. It eased upward a little, hovering over the crook of the turtle's arm. My eyes flicked from the fang to Her great face and back._

_ "M-m-y -"_

_ The fang buried itself into us._

_ "_Lady!"

_ I was yanked forward, striking my knees between Her massive forelegs. Leonardo's body arched, his teeth baring themselves against the night even as I became aware of an odd, draining sensation. The translucent tooth turned red and a dark line spilled from the puncture mark, dripping hot into the soil. I felt his fingers cramp at the end of his limb, but it was no more than a detached notation as I watched Her work in abject wonder._

_ Then the fire struck._

_ It seared through my host so fast I had no chance to block myself. It barreled over me, smearing my thoughts beneath the onslaught and leaving me helpless in its wake. Leonardo's chest heaved with my bewilderment, but we had no chance at a reprieve._

_ Heh, of course not._

_ Like a riptide retreating into the sea, it came sweeping back over me. My head shook with the roar of it. Claws of agony drew across my consciousness, pulling, dragging, stretching until -_

_ Click._

_ An unchecked, feral howl blasted off the walls around us and it took me a moment to realize that it was coming from Leonardo. Oh...wait. No, that one was me after all._

_ The fire condensed itself at the base of my neck and began seeping down my injured arm. Gnawing at the muscle and sinew, it pooled at the bottom of the bicep. And then...it was going too. Funneling out through that little hole until it wasn't blood filling Her piercing fang anymore._

_ It was light._

_ "_Messis!"_ I screamed._

_ She broke the connection._

_ I landed hard, staring up as She turned aside. The body beneath me convulsed, struggling for the oxygen I had forsaken to provide it. Her warm presence drifted away and I was left to blink at the dark ceiling._

_ It was different._

_ I was still managing the controls to the body beneath me. I could feel the life in it. Beating heart, check. Firing synapses, check. Lungs, stinging with frigid air, check._

_ But resting beneath my own thoughts now was nothing but a dark, wide pit._

_ Leonardo, I realized, was gone._

* * *

><p>* This took way too long in coming, I'm sorry. The "transfer" kept coming out so, so, so lame...and with a lot of dirty jokes attached. My cousin finally gave a stamp of approval on the tonguefang idea. Thank-you, Joshua, for patiently listening to my ranting on plot and storyline. Happy Birthday, bud!

** I gotta say it: penny for your thoughts? XD


	7. Chap 6: Where Leo Went

**Disclaimer: **TMNT does not belong to me...

A/N: All right, here it is at last! For everyone who's been wondering about our dear, intrepid leader in blue...

Where Leo Went

It was peaceful when he woke.

He could hear water running nearby.

His eyes were heavy and his stomach was full with that lazy contentment he always felt after a long walk around Casey's property. Somewhere along the way, he had stretched out, face-down, with his cheek resting in the crook of his elbow. He could hear a pair of birds chattering back and forth to one another. Every breath he took was thick with the scent of warm grass and freshly turned soil.

He loved that smell.

Leo hummed deep in his chest, pulling out of the drowsiness still clinging to him. He blinked into the bright afternoon, vaguely wondering how long he had been out and if April would be calling him in for lunch soon. And secretly, he found himself hoping not. So long as Mikey didn't catch him here snoozing, he'd take this moment of tranquility as long as it held -

His brow fell as his mind came skidding to a halt.

He was at the farm?

When had _that_ happened?

_Leo!_

Raphael's voice slipped between his ears and his head shot up. He hissed, ducking his forehead to the dirt as heat seared through the back of his mind. Images flickered behind his eyes, sights of a kitchen counter and the fearful blaze of his brother's eyes. He drew his knees up, clutching his fists to his temples as Raphael's deeper accent cut through his thoughts.

_Wha'd ya do ta 'im?_

What had happened?

Why was it so hard to think?

"Raph..." he groaned, twisting as if he could follow the other's words. Dizzying snapshots whirled in and out of the grass before him. He could feel the rough scrape of a thin carpet against his cheek. The left side of his skull was thrumming with his heartbeat. The dim world spun around him as his vision shakily refocused on the figure standing before him.

Facing off with him. Now, there was only fury smoldering in his brother's gold eyes.

"Raph!" Leo cried. He lunged to brace himself on his forearm, his other wrist cutting before him as if to shield against an oncoming attack.

The scene vanished and he was back in the quiet meadow. Shaking his aching head, he looked aside only to find he was supporting himself right at the edge of a river bank. His eyes cleared just enough to grant him a view of the slow churning water beneath him before the ground gave under him, shifting down an inch.

Alarm snaked through him.

And then the earth seemed to disintegrate.

Leo pitched forward, plunging into the shallow and frigid water. His beak instantly found the muddy bottom and he grunted as his weight slammed onto his neck and shoulders. A silvery cloud burst from between his teeth. His legs splashed down, leaving his carapace above the water to catch the debris of his mini landslide.

Hands sinking into the muck, he shoved himself to the surface. He spat and sputtered, swiping a hand across his eyes to clear them but only succeeded in smearing more slime and grit across his face. He sat back on his heels just sure that he would be tasting fishy river water for the rest of the day.

"Nice," he scoffed. He pulled the tails of his mask over his shoulder with a wet slap and began to squeeze it dry. Looking up the slope of his descent, he suddenly froze. His gaze shifted higher as a sharp shard of warning pierced the base of his neck. He was in the woods all right.

They just weren't the woods he knew.

The trees around him were thick, twisted, and a death-like gray. Their branches were draped in creepers that hung in lifeless cords. Shadows seethed in and out of the trunks, broken only by a single beam of light angled directly at the spot where Leo had been resting.

"What the -?" Leo made to push himself to his feet and stumbled, doubling over as something bit deep inside his arm. Hooking a thumb beneath his elbow pad, he slid it towards his wrist.

A soft gasp slipped from him as he stared at the blackish hole piercing the center of his joint.

It was the size of a quarter and a dark, scabbing crust had formed about the edges. Leo ran his thumb along the irritated ring. He should remember getting a wound like that...

He should remember how he wound up out there, too.

Leo touched his brow and scowled at the water slipping past his knees. He could remember the sound of tires on wet concrete. A chill in the air and muffled music humming through the roof beneath his feet. He could still see the flash of his brother's teeth against the night and then the shell cell had rang...

He started as a crash erupted behind him. A splintering and crackling cry of a tree being torn apart. Leo staggered back on the loose stones of the river. He spun to face the water, lifting his eyes to the higher ridge on the opposite bank. The air rumbled with sudden, jarring impacts that Leo felt shiver beneath him.

Instinctively, his hand arched above his head even as his brain registered that there was no weight on his backside. His fingers struck empty air.

Ah, crud.

He looked around and snatched up a short, broken branch. Splashing forward, he eyed the other side of the river with tension rising in his shoulders as he readied himself. But it was no monster that crested the grassy rise.

He barely caught the patter of tiny feet before she appeared. Well, he didn't truly see her at first as much as he saw an arching slice of red break through the gloomy backdrop of trees. A little girl in a bright sundress leaped out over the river, hung suspended for a beat, and then disappeared into the darker depths.

Leo hastily flung his branch aside and surged after her, slowing as the river rose to his waist. He kicked off the rocky bottom and surged into the frigid water, expertly cutting across the sluggish current.

Her little blonde head popped up as he closed in on her. Blue eyes huge with fear, she flailed in desperation, completely oblivious to the turtle. He caught her by the back of her dress and hauled her against his chest, continuing to kick towards the other side of the river. She kept thrashing, dousing them both repeatedly as she twisted and squirmed against his hold.

"Easy," Leo spluttered after taking a wild elbow to the jaw. His toes brushed over stones and he planted his feet, lifting them both into the warm air. She writhed against his chest enough to turn, raking soft fingernails over the hard, pebbled flesh of his shoulder. It didn't hurt by any means, but still, Leo grit his teeth in frustration and snapped, "Hey, enough!"

She stopped with both hands pressed against his plastron and looked to him in surprise. To Leo's utter shock, he felt a hot line sear along his spine as their eyes met. His anger vanished and in a split second, his head went rummy and a strange, prickling sensation settled deep into his elbows and knees. He found himself swaying where he stood, captivated by the faint rivulets of water trickling down her cheeks.

_Leo!_ a deep voice rang at the back of his thoughts. _Leo, wha' are ya doin'? Get outta there!_

How could he though? Look away? She had the most stunning eyes he'd ever seen. Pale...like the summer sky giving way to chill of fall...yeah, that was close, wasn't it? Sharp and intelligent beyond her age, yet still a thread of sadness lingered about her. Her young face seemed to know too much and yet was only too eager to learn more...

About the world.

About life.

About him.

And he found that, if she asked, he would be more than will to tell her whatever she wanted to -

He flinched as another bellow let loose from the forest. Leo drew back with a gasp, pulling out of the strange reverie long enough to look up the steep embankment. The air was trembling again with the force of those gigantic, pursuing steps. When he looked back, the strange air about her had gone, leaving her small frame to lean into him with a frightened whimper. Leo fought his way towards dry land, his legs burning as he slogged through the shallows.

Upon reaching the shore, he pulled his small passenger under a small overhang, thick with mud and creeping roots. He had just hiked his feet up after them when the monstrous steps reached the embankment. A thin layer of dirt rained before them as the massive weight of the beast eased over the hill and began to slide towards the water. Leo pushed his shell harder against the damp soil and prayed that the ground would hold out as it came to a stop above their heads.

A massive set of talons curled around the upper lip of their make-shift little hideout. The girl let out a soft whimper and curled closer to Leo's side. He gaped at the four scythe-like claws biting into the dirt before him, but he wrapped his around about her thin shoulders all the same.

They both started at a loud exhalation that drew out from the creature. The earth moaned as its weight shifted back and forth for an indecisive moment while it sniffed, sharply, searching for them. Then, after what felt like an eternity of Leo's locked knees holding them absolutely still, the creature gave a disgusted grunt.

The claws retracted and the rumbling steps picked up again, following along the shoreline in retreat.

Leonardo all but collapsed. His legs trembled as the adrenaline he hadn't noticed shooting through him began to filter out of him. He slid down through the chilly dirt, fighting back a delirious giggle that threatened to come slipping out of his throat. He ducked his head and eased back out into the open, stretching on his toes to get a glimpse of the beast.

But, luckily, it had already passed beyond a bend in the river.

Too bad he knew that luck had a nasty habit of pivoting on its heel to bite you in the ass if you weren't looking. Especially when a turtle was involved.

His eyes narrowed, doubtfully.

"Are you a monster?"

He glanced back towards the light voice. She was perched at the water's edge with her pale knees drawn to her chest. Balanced precariously on the balls of her feet, there was nothing remaining of the disconcerting presence Leo had sensed before. Now, she was just a little girl who was soaked to the bone and watching him with apprehension.

"No," he said, offering her a smile. "I'm not a monster."

"But...Papa said that only monsters live these woods."

Leo wandered back towards her, keeping his eye on their surroundings, unable to shake the feeling that their endeavor had been more than just a little too easy. He sank to his knee before her, lifting his brow mischievously in a way he hoped would mirror Mikey's friendly nature.

"I don't live in these woods," he said. "So then, I couldn't be a monster, could I?"

She gave him a doubtful scowl and he sighed, letting the facade drop. He cleared his throat and lifted a finger in the direction the beast had gone. "So...what was that thing?"

Blue eyes blinked and she lifted her shoulders. "Big trouble."

"Yeah, I picked up that part," Leo said with a soft scoff. "Why was it chasing you?"

"Papa went out hunting and forgot his knife. I tried to catch up with him so he could have it an'...an' I was being too loud."

A coil of alarm wound through the turtle and he shot a glance upwards. He didn't have to wonder just how well a father (a hunter at that) would take the sight of his child holding a conversation with a mutant. "Is...is your dad around here?"

His alarm flared into full fledged terror, however, when her bottom lip suddenly began to tremble.

"H-he said he would take it away!" she wailed. She dropped her forehead to her knees with a muffled sob. "He said to run home! B-but, i-it chased me anyway!"

"Hey, hey, hey," Leo said, quickly, setting his hand upon her chilled shoulder. He winced when a sudden flash of heat shot up his forearm and he jerked back in surprise, blinking at the ache that filled his wrist and knuckles. A dull trickle of red slithered down his index finger and he shook his head as his vision blurred and darkened. A bright blue vein cut behind his eyelids and he saw a large bead of blood rising against the darkness.

In his mind, he felt his hand move to his mouth and a savage rush wound through him at the metallic taste that touched his tongue.

"Are you okay?"

Light flooded back into his thoughts and his vision cleared to find her strange eyes fixed upon his. Leo looked at his hands to find both were whole but trembling. "I, uh," he muttered, rubbing his thumb across his eyes. "Yeah, I'm...I'm fine." He swallowed down his nausea and returned his attention to her. "I...I should take you home, shouldn't I? Um, your father is probably waiting for you there, right?"

She sniffed and gave a slow nod. Rising, she stepped past him, looking across the river and pointing into the woods. Leo stood as well, wiping his hands across his thighs as if he could wipe the unsettling feeling in his gut away while she spoke.

"Home is there, through the forest. There's a cave and then..." she turned to grin up at him. "Then, we're almost there. But we can't stop until we there."

Leo fought the urge to hesitate before he carefully gathered her up into his arms, nor let out a sigh of relief when no other weird shocks cut through him. He frowned, though, while she eased her arm up and around the back of his neck. He stepped back into the water, keeping his eyes on the forest across from them.

"Why not?"

She clung a little tighter to him as the river rose up about their shoulders and Leo fought to swim smoothly in a side-stroke, keeping her as high and dry as he could manage. She whimpered as she curled her knees against his plastron, refusing to answer until his feet had found the shallows again and he was carrying her up the embankment.

"Else the feeders will get us," she whispered at last.

The statement halted the turtle's steps as he faced off with the forest. Because giant, mystery monsters weren't enough to deal with, now there were _feeders_? Whatever the hell they were...

Where the heck was he?

More importantly, though, he turned to her with a frown.

"Hey, you haven't seen any other turtles around here, have you? Ones that look like me?"

She shook her head, furiously, side-to-side. "There are _more_ like you?"

"Yeah," Leo said, setting off at a brisk pace with a final, nervous look over the water. "My brothers. I don't know what happened to them since I...got here."

The little head fell to the side in order to rest against his shoulder and her eyes crinkled. "I only see you."

Leo glanced down to her with a faint smile. The churning in his gut was getting worse as he fell beneath the shadow of the trees. The terrain grew rougher, but with his calloused feet, he didn't spare it much thought. He only hitched his small passenger higher and continued to walk, debating whether or not he wanted to delve further into the matter of these feeder-creatures.

He didn't get the chance to ask because she beat him with a question of her own.

"What's your name?"

He smiled. "Leonardo. What's yours?"

A slow smile was returned to him, along with a faint lighting behind her pale blue irises.

"My name is Messis."

Leo stuck out his lip, as if considering the name, and let out a soft chuckle at the worried expression that flitted across her face. "Well, it's nice to meet you, Messis."

She beamed at him before returning her head to his shoulder. They walked in silence for a while, with Leonardo cutting his way through waist-high grass and ducking low branches. He kept himself on alert, watching the gloomy trees for any sign of danger, completely unaware that the back of his mind was beginning to wander again. His thoughts became muddled, as if the mist winding between the dark trunks was seeping into his consciousness.

"Leonardo?" the girl whispered to him softly. "Will you tell me a story? One about you and your brothers?"

He blinked slowly and it was almost a full minute before the question registered. He continued down the overgrown footpath. His chin dipped down, vaguely, and he heard his own voice reply as if from a distance.

"Of course."

* * *

><p>In the darkness, She rested. Her great mass was coiled about the dank hole that would become Her lair in time. Her loyal little slave slept as well, resting his vessel's body against Her warm flank. His breathing was slow, even, and completely secure in Her presence, disregarding the crusted blood lining his arm and emptiness that now shared the turtle's head with him.<p>

Unseen by any, her great, reptilian mouth turned further upward in triumph.

Neither she nor he noticed when faint humming began at their prize's hip. They were not roused by the light of the shell-cell's front screen lighting up. In the end, though, it wouldn't have mattered. Because, if they had looked, neither would have recognized or given care to the bold black name scrawled against the bright blue-white face.

Mikey.

* * *

><p>* Slight, kind-of cliffie at the end, just to make up for how ssssllllllooooowww this feels! And yes, a little weird too. The next time we see Leo, though, there will be stuff hitting the fan everywhere, I promise!<p>

**Reviews, pretty please?


	8. Chap 7: Waylaid

**Disclaimer: **TMNT and all related characters do not belong to me. Only Messis, the worm, and the plot are mine, which I like and they still makes me happy, so hurray!

A/N: I am sheepish, and late, and sheepish again. But I hope you like the next installment!

Waylaid

_"The number you are trying to reach is unavailable at this time..."_

Michelangelo sighed, his shoulders sagging. He draped himself over the back of the spare office chair in Donatello's lab. The inventor sat at the computer beside him. His brow was furrowed as he poured over website after website featuring every earthworm, night crawler, and parasite he could find.

His shell cell was propped against the lower frame of his monitor. The black screen and green gridlines were rotating in and out, searching for Leo's phone. A red light on the keypad kept a slow pace, indicating that each search was coming up empty.

Their brother was somewhere out of range.

Mikey swung his seat from side to side as the voicemail continued its toneless drabble, looking over his brother's desk. One of the printers was busy producing a fresh pile of missing persons fliers from the police database. Donatello's friend, the Professor, had noticed a rise in the number of runaway teens he was seeing on the streets. He was hoping to put some real names and accurate information to the new faces. He and Donnie always held onto the chance that they could reach these kids and get them some help before they vanished into the city's populace for good.

It was a noble effort, Mikey thought. He just hoped they wouldn't be filling out a missing turtle report soon.

_Beep!_

"Hey, Leo," he said, his voice sounding strained and unusually high. "It's Mike. Um, look, Raph got home like an hour ago and..."

He exchanged a look with Donatello before swiveling his chair around. Across the lab, in the family's makeshift medical center, Splinter was tending to Raphael's wounded head. The rat's ears were pricked forward while he listened to his son's story. A concerned frown overtook his face as details concerning the fight in Casey's apartment came to light.

"I'm not going to lie to you, Leo, he's talking crazy. And a lot of the crazy seems to be revolving around _you_, dude. So, if you could do us a solid and maybe _check in _or something, that's be great." He flashed a thumbs up to no one in particular. "Okay, so I'll see you when you get home. Which should be like any minute right? Right. Okay, bye, Leo."

He hung up and his gut gave an unsettling twist when Leo's name and number winked out of sight. He wiped his thumb across the screen.

Donnie pushed back from his keyboard. "Not sure how to land it, Mike?"

Mikey turned to scowl at him. "Maybe next time _you_ should be the one to leave our missing-slash-possibly-body-snatched-brother a breezy message."

"Boy, that'd learn me."

The youngest flashed a grim smile. He scooted closer to the inventor's shoulder to peer at his work. "So, how's the search going? Find anything about this thing yet?"

"Well, as descriptive as Raph was, the term 'freaky-ass worm' only gets you so far on the internet." Donnie sighed, digging his thumb in the corner of his eye.

"So...you believe him?"

Don hesitated and frowned. "You don't?"

"No, I do," Mikey folded his arms over the back of the chair and lowered his chin to rest on them. "But being the skeptizmo of the group seems to be your thing, dude. I just thought you took Raph's story extremely well, all things considering."

The inventor shot a look over his shoulder to his father and older brother. He clicked his fingernails, thoughtfully, over the center row of the keyboard while he considered his answer.

"It is hard to swallow," he admitted at last, "and I'm working on it, Mike. But as insane as the thought of a worm taking over Leo might be, the fact remains that _something_ attacked Raph. _Something_ made it so Leo didn't come back with him. And he got _this_," he picked up the jam jar from its position on his desk. The wicked black barb clinked off the glass as the waterlogged flesh bobbed, "from some_where_."

"It just seems like, until we get another explanation," the inventor continued helplessly, "that maybe we should take this one seriously."

Mikey watched him with his head tilted, mischievously. "That's very mature, genius."

"Isn't it, though?"

They shared a tense grin, excusing the weak banter for the moment because neither one of them really knew what to do at this point. Mikey's eyes slid past his brother to the computer screen and his face fell. "Dude, what happened to that snail?"

"Leucochloridium cercariae."

"Um, gesundheit?"

"It's a parasite," Donnie continued. "One of the cases I actually managed to find on mind control." He scrolled back up the page. "So far, what I've seen is limited to the insect world. Snails, ants, that sort of thing. See, the worms mature, feeding off the snail host until they can be deposited into the tentacles. Then the cercariae force it to go out into broad daylight where a passing bird mind find it. The worms light up their bodies in this kind of color show so that they'll be sure to be seen and mistaken for a caterpillar.

"The birds eat the tentacles and the cercariae inside, so that the worms can set up permanent camp in the bird. Which is where it really wants to be. You can feed off a bird a lot longer than a snail, right?" He glanced aside and wrinkled his beak. "It's kind of gross."

"_Kind_ of?" Mikey squawked, looking ill.

Donatello snorted and minimized the screen. "The good news is that this verifies some of Raph's story. There are creatures with this capability. It's feasible."

"Sure."

"Unfortunately," Donnie lifted towards his desk lamp, turning the glass to get a better look at the mottled flesh underneath. "I haven't seen anything with these type of markings. Or a stinger quite this size."

Mikey's eyes widened. "Please don't say alien parasite. Those are the worst kind!"

"I don't know...It's not like I'm expert on worms," Donnie said. He tilted the jar again, allowing a sliver of light to cut across his eyes. Mikey's stomach gave an uneasy turn as he watched his brother study it a moment longer before he shrugged and set it aside. "Still, if someone had discovered this thing before, you'd think it would have been in the news."

"Yeah," Mikey said, solemnly, trying to quell the hollowness in his gut. "Syfy would have had a movie out by now about it."

Donnie smiled and returned to the computer. "And they _are_ the experts on this kind of thing."

"I know, right!"

The pair fell silent again, allowing the severity of their situation to settle upon them once more. Donnie's fingers flew over the keys and Mikey tuned his ears towards Raphael's low voice. He twisted in his seat, setting his carapace against the desk so he could watch his father work on bandaging his other brother.

The longer he thought about all this, the more it kind of hurt to swallow.

"Hey, Donnie?"

"Yeah, Mike?"

"When the birds eat the snail's eye-things...does the snail survive?"

A long thread of silence followed.

"Sometimes," Donnie replied eventually. "But if that's the case," he cleared his throat, sitting back, "the snail remains infected with the parasite's embryos. It only goes on to grow more cercariae in order to continue spreading to birds."

Mikey's fingers curled into fists over the back of the chair. "You know, I don't think we should sit around waiting for Leo to check his voicemail."

Donatello closed his eyes. "Me either." He turned to look across the room as well. "I say we wait till sensei gives Raph the all clear...Then we should track down Casey. I think we need to hear the other side of this story."

* * *

><p>White noise.<p>

The droning hiss of it filled the back of Leo's thoughts like the tinny whine of thousands of mosquitoes. Every step he took seemed to allow snaking tendrils of it to lurch forward, poisoning his focus and casting a blurred haze around the edge of his vision.

His breath was becoming labored while he tried to talk and keep up a grueling pace at the same time. He'd been telling stories about his childhood, regaling all of Mikey pranks and over the top inspirations that had gotten them into trouble more times than once. He spoke of Donnie and his first successes as an engineer. He told Messis about Raphael's strength and the fierceness of his heart. He talked of Splinter and the respect and honor he held for the old rat. And then he kept going, probably into more detail than he should have, about their more recent escapades into the surface world and beyond, trying to keep his little passenger entertained as he walked.

The threat of these so-called "feeders" had not strayed far from his mind.

At last, he slowed in a small clearing. Surveying their surroundings, he noticed that his shoulders were rising and falling harder than usual. He wished his headache would abate even a little; he couldn't hear with all the noise rattling between his ears.

Not that there would have been much to listen to. From what he could tell the forest was absolutely still around them. No birds. No insects. No animals rustling through the brush. There was only the gnarled trees and faint wisps of mist winding between their trunks.

There was a hitch beneath his lungs that he hadn't felt in years. While his toned frame had lasted further in the trek than most, even Leonardo couldn't trudge endlessly through uneven forest terrain with an additional sixty pounds latched to his side.

"Messis?" he puffed, stirring her head from his shoulder.

"Hmm?"

"How much further is it to your home?"

He bent his knees, returning her to her own feet while he stretched his neck and shoulders.

"It's not far," the girl replied, shifting her weight on tender feet. She set her hands behind her back, curiously. "Am I too heavy, Leonardo?"

Leo glanced down to her in surprise. At the earnestness of her expression, he gave a kind smile and sank to one knee. He set his hand upon her shoulder. "Of course not. You're perfectly fine, Messis." Her face lit up at that. "It's just...we've been walking for a long time. I had thought we would have gotten you home by now and I could have kept looking for my brothers. I mean, it's been..."

He looked skyward and frowned. By his internal clock and the weariness settled inside his limbs, he would have guessed they had been traveling for nearly two hours. Yet the sunlight came through the canopy in the exact angle as it had when he had woken by the side of the river. Even the clouds seemed the same, not having drifted one way or the other in all this time.

He shook his head. "Hey, Messis, did you -"

Her hand suddenly clamped about his wrist.

Messis stepped into the turtle's side. Her pale cheeks lightened two shades and her eyes when went wide with fear. She was staring past him into the forest.

"Leonardo," she whispered.

Leo twisted, his attention cutting across the small clearing to a tree not twenty feet away. Something stood among the roots, it's snuffling snout working a path through the dark soil. From Leo's vantage it seemed to be a wild pig of some kind. It was a short thing, muscular, with hunched shoulders and heavy in the belly. As its mouth opened and shut, he could spot blunt, yellowed tusks flashing.

He took an instinctive step in front of the girl, noting with a sinking feeling that they were standing downwind of it. Even as he watched it, the broad head turned towards them and began to bob up and down as it caught their scent.

Leo sucked a breath between his teeth.

It didn't have any eyes.

That couldn't be natural.

"Leonardo," Messis whimpered again.

The creature's lips drew upward, unveiling the rest of its mangled teeth. It turned to face them and Leo retreated a silent step, his shell pressing the girl further from the animal. Threatening snorts and huffs filled the air between them and then silver spines drew out of its mottled, wiry fur. They stood like hackles along the high ridge of its back.

Leonardo began to ease them both away, keeping himself facing the creature. "Slowly," he whispered to the trembling girl. "Slowly."

That's when the damn thing decided to charge.

Leo shoved Messis out of its path and his chest tightened with guilt when she let out a startled yelp. Falling back another step, he clenched his fist and braced his weight onto the balls of his feet.

_This is such a bad idea._

He pushed off, breaking into his own charge. Tufts of dirt flew into the air as the beast closed the gap between them. Turtle and creature bore down on one another. An enraged bellow and a defiant snarl met an instant before they did.

Leonardo pivoted at the last moment, throwing his momentum into a powerful kick that brought his heel slamming just behind the swine's wide shoulder.

The creature was thrown off balance and crashed into the forest floor just as Leo let out a painful roar of his own. He had delivered his fair share of kicks throughout his young life. To Foot soldiers, monsters, Triceratons, and Hun's massive chest. But this time there had been nothing to give beneath his heel. The pig seemed to have been made out of solid bone and the impact was driven far up the warrior's leg.

Sharp, tingling barbs consumed his foot and ankle and Leo stumbled in his landing. He winced as he turned to look at his opponent, a fresh sheet of white noise searing the space behind his eyes.

"Leonardo!" Messis wailed behind him.

He shook his head, cracking his eyes to find the animal writhing in the grass. It was squealing, throwing its head from side to side as if it was suffering the greatest agony. Leo limped a few steps to the side. There was no way it had taken that much damage from a kick.

"Oh," the girl whimpered behind him. "Oh, Leonardo...you shouldn't...you shouldn't have -"

Her words died as a loud rustling came from the left. A massive boar came ambling through the brush and brambles. Another trotted in from ahead. Two more appeared around the trunk of the tree. Wet snouts worked at the air, wicked chops snapped at nothing, and all around them silver spines rose into sight.

Yeah, no thanks.

Leo spun on his toes, sweeping down to catch the girl up as he sprang into a run. Angry jabs protested the abuse on his foot, but he'd run on injuries before. If he had to do it again to save the girl, so be it.

_And, uh, what about yerself there, bro?_ Raphael's voice whispered to him.

Leo frowned at that, but the hissing in his ears was growing again. To the point that it drowned out the eerie wail of the beasts falling into pursuit. He tripped and staggered over the snarled foliage, feeling as if every root and branch were reaching to snag him. Behind him came the sound of devastation as the animals tore through the underbrush and catching up to his flight.

Gritting his teeth, Leo pushed himself harder, trying to ignore the limp which was growing more and more prevalent the further he went.

"Keep going!" Messis cried. "Up there! There's a -"

He saw it coming through the trees. A space where the sunlight was unblocked by the canopy. The grass was exposed for a few feet.

And then the ground suddenly dropped off.

Leo broke out into the open. Two of the massive creatures appeared just at his heels.

"Jump!"

He didn't question the order.

Planting his good foot at the very lip of the edge, he threw both of them into the air. They arced high above the sudden slant of the forest floor.

One of the monsters locked its legs, its sharp hooves digging grooves in the dry soil as its momentum carried it over the edge. The other followed after Leo, the great maw snapping shut just behind them before gravity kicked it and brought all three down.

Leo brought his legs up, curling himself about the child as best as he could. His carapace slammed into the sun-baked ground and his teeth cracked loudly through his skull. Messis crashed into his plastron. Her light weight bounced off the hard surface and Leo scrambled to keep his grip on her as they plummeted.

The boar that had followed them came down with a sickening crunch, landing too far forward on its chest and neck while its backside carried forward. It began to flip out of control, its black tongue flopping to the side. Leo pressed the girl's face into his chest, sparing her the sight of the dead beast tumbling alongside them.

They continued along the bumpy slide with rocks jabbing at Leo's heels and thighs. A large plume of dust roiled in their wake. Leo's aching teeth were chattering, painfully. When the ground leveled out, they slid for several feet more, eventually coming a halt as rock and dust gave way back into grass.

Leonardo lay motionless for a moment, waiting for his adrenaline to finish the ride and catch up to the rest of him. When it did, he began to tremble and his breath escaped in tiny hitches. He started when small palms were set against his chest. Messis pushed herself up. Her knees struck the ground at his side and she began to shake his shoulders.

"Leonardo, are you all right?"

He propped himself up on his elbows and gave her a weary grin. "Just fine...You?"

She jumped to her feet and waved for him to follow her. "Come on! This way!"

Leo blinked in alarm as she turned and took off for the nearby tree line. He rolled to his knees and staggered up, bits of rock and dust falling from the lower rim of his carapace. "Messis, wait!" Distant squeals drew his eyes upward, where the second pair of monsters were outlined against the sky. Leo winced and followed after her, bypassing the dead creature and its companion that had taken the first fall down the hill.

That boar was kicking and writhing itself, moaning brokenly as it tried (and failed) to right itself.

He closed his eyes against the sound and followed the girl back into the forest.

"Over here!"

Leo shoved aside a low hanging branch, just catching a glimpse of her red dress through the gloom. "Messis, wait for me!"

"We're almost there! This way!"

He scowled and kept after her. A flash of red here, a glimmer of blonde hair there in the thin shafts of sunlight. She seemed to know her way well enough now, Leo just hoped he'd have a chance to recuperate after seeing her to safety.

Finally, he found her stopped at a gathering of oak trees. Their roots dipped down and coiled around, creating a type of bowl in the ground. Enough soil had eroded away over the years to make it look like the outer ring was created by entangled snakes. Across from them, there was a narrow hole burrowed straight into the earth, so shadowed that he would have missed it if Messis hadn't pointed it out.

"That's my cave."

The old prickling sensation reappeared at the base of his neck.

Messis dropped to her rear, stretching her legs out so she could slide into the bowl. She landed hard in the damp soil, catching herself on her hands before turning to beam up at him. "Come see!"

"Messis, I think we should keep -"

She darted across the space and ducked into the shadows.

" - moving." Leo sigh in frustration. A nearby wail caught his ear and he rolled his eyes before jumping down as well. Approaching the hole, he realized his beak was wrinkled in distrust and shook his head to wipe the expression from his face. He sank down to one knee and peered into the dark. "Messis?"

No answer.

Leo lowered himself to his stomach (the only way he'd ever be able to maneuver the narrow gap) and slithered his way out of sight.

His carapace brushed the ceiling, dropping dried and flaky bulbs on top of his neck. He let out a disgusted grunt and eased himself lower, army-crawling along the floor of the tunnel. Trying hard not to think about the fact that there was a tree pressing down on him, he slowly worked his way forward.

"Leonardo?" Messis' voice came from ahead, drifting from a dim glow that appeared at the end of the tunnel. Leo kept going, struggling with the tight curve for a bit before he was able to break through.

He found that the tunnel opened up into a shallow cave. Messis sat on a rock across from him, her hair lit by a bright beam of sunlight that had made its way through a crack in the ceiling. It seemed like the perfect little hideout for a child her age.

Until his eyes drifted upward.

Dangling in loose, dripping ropes, were brownish...vines, if they could be called that. Appendages, maybe. Something like ugly tentacles, translucent enough that the sun shone through the first layer of skin, revealing there was a hollow center. Like a tube running right down the middles.

Leo drew back a little, the sight of them enough to turn his stomach. But he swallowed down his uneasiness and pulled his torso into the opening, looking around to see if he could manage standing in the crowded area. He didn't want to brush his head against any of the vines but at the same time, he didn't want to crouch under them waiting from their strange, amber colored liquid to drip onto him either.

Messis, he noticed, had managed to cross the space without a single drop touching her. He wondered how as their eyes met and she smiled at him.

A shred of warning ignited his senses a second before he was struck.

A powerful blow came from above and behind him. A black line cut across his vision as he hit the floor. Ducking his head, he rolled to his knees, spinning around to face his new opponent. Dark eyes widened and he threw an arm out to shield the little girl from the hideous thing clinging to the wall.

It was serpentine in nature with the elongated trunk of its body and sleek tail lazily gliding back and forth. But this creature had four legs, each sporting three sharp joints that was insect-like, and ending in five long and bony fingers. They clicked against the stone eagerly, wicked and frail-looking all at the same time. Its flesh was the color of rust and was broken by small flares of brown that ran lengthwise along its sides.

The head was a bizarre mixture of reptile and parasite. Two rows of eyes ran along the extended skull, shining like oil droplets in the light and ending near the base of its neck. Its jaws parted, breaking into three separate pieces that were each lined with rows of white, serrated teeth.

It was a slathering, foul thing, a creature that belonged to darkness and nightmares. And for the life of him, Leo couldn't place where he'd seen it before.

It began to chatter at them, much like a horrific version of Klunk when he was busy hunting birds on the television. Leo blinked when he realized that it wasn't a random occurrence; the irritating sound actually meant something.

Worse, he found he could understand it.

Bubbling from the darkness behind his eyes, the turtle felt a stirring through his own thoughts. Shifting, rearranging and falling back into a comprehensive interpretation of the thing's constant clicking and salivating.

"Hello, Leonardo," it said from inside his head. "Welcome to my Lady's domain."


	9. Chap 8: A Matter of Perspective

**Disclaimer**: I do not own TMNT...

A/N: Hey, guys, I've been busy juggling three freaking jobs this summer (thus, the recent M.I.A. status) So now I'm back to life among humans again and I've got a fresh chapter to post! I hope you enjoy it!

A Matter of Perspective

Leonardo's body bucked from beneath him. His knees struck the cave floor and his arms flew out, instinctively, in attempt to shield the girl from the monstrosity clinging to the wall. Another blast of whirring erupted between his ears and his vision darkened. Even so, he could make out that slender, reptilian shape working its way towards them. A second convulsion struck, driving all thoughts of Messis' safety out of his head.

Missing memories came slamming back into place, pouring into the empty spaces that had plagued him since his awakening by the river. A torrent of shutter-stop images flashed behind his eyes, flickering between the cave and his last night in the city.

He remembered the bite of a wind that still smelled of rain and the muffled music thrumming up from the club's roof.

One black, hideous talon spread flat, taking the creature's weight onto the floor.

He could hear his brother's voice in the dark. He saw the concern that filled his fierce and bright eyes. Then...and then...

Leo's stomach seemed to evaporate as eerie chattering filled his head.

The apartment.

Images flashed quicker, more urgent, as if his brain was frantic to get all the dots connected while he still had time. He could see milk spread thin over the kitchen floor. Red droplets covered the bedroom carpet. Light glinted from the scattered pieces of the bathroom mirror.

He remembered Casey's voice. His words hijacked with the venom of a stranger.

Leo swore.

He barely saw the claws before they smashed into his exposed plastron. Leo was thrown across the small space and his carapace met the stone wall with a loud crack. He grunted as his neck snapped against the ridge of his shell and he slid down, only just catching himself from landing on his face at the monster's feet. Nausea swelled up his throat. His head was light, swimming between the two realities until he began to wonder which one he would actually end up in.

Not that either were overly appealing.

Leo looked up, finding the creature looming overhead. It shook its head, clacking and chattering in vile delight. "Language, Leonardo. There's mixed company present."

The last time they had faced one another, this thing had been pulling Casey's strings. His mouth, his words, his facial expressions. But Leo recognized him now. And by the gleam in those oily eyes, he knew the fight they'd had in the apartment was far from over.

"Ah, there it is!" it sang in nasty delight. "It's all coming back, isn't it?"

Before Leo could reply, it lunged forward. The turtle's legs strained to push off the wall, charging with a shout to match its garbled roar. He didn't anticipate the lumbering monster to suddenly duck its head just as they met. The strange jaws clamped high over his leg and Leo was taken off his feet. Its weight slammed them back into the stone.

Serrated teeth sliced through Leo's skin, sending hot currents up through his belly. Hissing in pain, he threw his arms about the serpentine neck, wincing as his plastron cracked off the broad shoulder. Hooking an arm around the curve of its foreleg, he scrambled for a secure hold on the beast.

His elbow flew down on the exposed spine of its neck. Its flesh gave beneath the hit, but its grip didn't waver. Hot blood ran down both sides of his leg, sprinkling the gray stone below with dark droplets.

Snarling, Leo brought his free leg up, violently, into the corded flesh of its chest. His knee sank into muscle, but there seemed to be no sternum to catch the brunt of the strike. He felt the heat of the creature's breath blow over his trapped thigh, flecking his skin with thick globs of saliva.

One row of black eyes glared upwards, laughing at him, and Leo switched tactics. Abandoning his feeble grasp on its shoulders, he attacked the face. Blunt nails raked over the thin membranes that served as protection for those vile little beads. He hooked his fingertips and felt wet, softer flesh give way.

_That_ got a reaction.

The creature let out a muffled shriek and its jaws sprang open. It lurched up and back, a few dozen hooks snagging over Leo's skin in its retreat. He pushed at the bony face, wrenching his leg clear in the process. Leaping away like a startled cat, it shook its head furiously. Leo dropped to the floor and curled over his shredded leg.

His hands trembled over the three ugly gouges exposing his muscle. He clamped his palms over his thigh in a clumsy attempt to staunch the bleeding. His artery still had to be intact, so there was some good news. But fire coursed from the wounds, sending hollow spikes through his gut.

The worm-beast was stumbling about, still howling, as a wide patch of red ran down its face. Snorting and hissing, it twisted its attention back to the young ninja. Murder burned in its remaining eyes. Keeping his gaze locked onto it, Leo's left hand abandoned his leg in search for anything that might pass as a weapon. He settled for a broken piece of shale beside him. Glaring at the foul creature, Leo readied himself to sheer the other side blind if it came too near again.

But he wasn't expecting the giggle.

Neither was his opponent, it seemed.

The thing flinched before turning towards the source of the noise. Leo's focus slid past its shoulders and a tingle sliced down his spine.

Messis was laughing.

The child scooted to the edge of her rocky seat, pale feet swinging idly above the ground. Her hair gleamed like a halo in the sparse light. She beamed at both of them.

"Now, now, boys. Don't you think you've had enough?" Leaning forward, she dropped her chin into the heel of her palm. "I can't have either of you permanently damaged."

Leonardo started when a light itching consumed his leg. Looking down, he saw the muscle and skin of his thigh were quickly knitting themselves back together. Pushing back in alarm, his shell scraped the wall as he watched himself healing. The blood staining the floor and his hands withered out of sight.

"_What..._?" he breathed.

A soft hiss broke through his bewilderment. He lifted his eyse to find that the worm's face was also being restored. It shook its head once more, blinking again and again.

"There now," she said, brightly, from her corner. "No harm. No foul."

Leo hauled himself up, testing the strength of his leg. His eyes widened as it took his weight just as easily as if the injury had never happened He reached out to the wall, his mind churning with all this madness.

"What's happening?" he whispered to no one.

Messis' smile faded. She pushed from her seat with more grace any child should posses. Leo glanced to her just as that unearthly luminescence returned to her irises. His neck began to prickle with warning again. Suddenly, that suffocating presence he had felt at Casey's seemed to be all around him, slipping cords of paralysis about his mind.

"Haven't you guessed yet, little one?" she asked, quietly

He jerked again as the sense of falling came over him again and he was swept back into the apartment. He remembered a lurch of surprise taking his stomach as he went down and landing hard on his shell. Something warm and wet stuck him in the shoulder and there had been a brief pinch on his neck. Then were was something else...something foreign and unusual shifting through the back of his thoughts. Searching for a crack into his safest and most secure place in the world.

And it found itself a path leading straight into his mind. It had breached his defenses, pried into his brain, and poisoned him with its essence before he finally blacked out.

He had lost consciousness in the apartment only to wake up in a strange forest. Just in time to offer his aid to a helpless...

_Leonardo, you idiot_! his mind wailed. _You walked into a trap!_

"Yes, you did," Messis said lightly, walking forward. The lank, colorless tendrils draping from the ceiling pulled away from her, opening like a curtain for her to pass. Not one foul drop had the chance to blemish her.

"But don't be too hard on yourself," she continued. "How could you have foreseen this? How could that cunning mind of yours have ever possibly prepared itself for me?"

He stared into her bright, triumphant face. "Y-you're in my head?"

She made a face and shook her head. "No."

Before he could utter another syllable, her small hand pressed flat against his chest plate. Leo screamed, his head flying back to crack off the wall. All the strength was sapped from his legs and he fell, heavily, to his knees. He trembled as every fiber within him was severed by fire. The heat of it flowed up his limbs and funneled through the point where her palm met his plastron.

They were eye-to-eye now, bewildered black staring into amused blue. Yellow light was seeping from beneath her hand, curling out like stray sparks from a fire and winking out of sight. A low whine broke from the turtle's sinus. He felt as if his lungs were being compressed from within. Messis gazed at him, silent and curious, until his vision began to dim again and shoulders hitched, sharply. The gentle touch pulled away and Leo collapsed to his elbows, gasping for breath.

"Really, Leonardo, I thought someone with your unique life experience would have been harder to impress."

He groaned, his head reeling at the assault.

"Wh-what did you...?"

She lifted her shoulders. "I eliminated the pointless drama of you trying to overpower my servant and myself in attempt to escape. I wanted to give you a little taste of the rules here. In this place, I have the ultimate authority, Leonardo. The faster you accept that, the less you'll have to endure in trying disprove it."

"_H-how -"_

"You asked if I were in your head. A close guess, but wrong. The truth is that _you_ are in _mine_."

He looked up.

Messis gave him a slow smile. "The disorientation you've been experiencing? That slight buzzing in your ear?" She swiveled her finger around her own. "It's a normal side effect of the transference."

"Tran-transference?" he breathed. He could taste blood in his dry mouth.

The girl nodded, easing herself to her haunches beside him. "I pulled a portion of your essence into the core of my mind."

A bolt of shock twitched through him, his eyes widening in horror.

"Don't fret, Leonardo," she said, rocking herself slightly from side to side. "You're still alive. I learned long ago that mortal bodies fade quickly without some part of their true owners dwelling within. I only took enough to stifle your defiance. Without your intelligence, you're subconscious cannot rebel against my harvester, and I find that those separated from their instincts are far more...compliant when it comes to fulfilling my needs."

He shook his head in disbelief. "You...you _stole_ half my _soul_?"

A flicker of darkness crept over her face. "Believe me...I've devoured enough would-be philosopher's to know that definition of that...that _word_ remains in debate." She tipped her head, spreading her hands. "What you are now is a combination of thought, memories, experience, and revelations. Everything manifested into the truest form of self-image. I've given you a _gift_, Leonardo. Not everyone gets the chance to see themselves stripped of every illusion they project for family and peers."

Leo managed to push himself to his knees, his arms quivering as they tried to keep him upright. He glanced past her as the skeletal form of her servant sidled up behind her. Messis followed his gaze. "The same goes for him. So, you see, he's not so insignificant he first seems."

She reached back to stroke its disjointed jaws. The thin tail sliced the air and it inched nearer, like an over affectionate dog. Its bony legs quivered beneath the attention and a few pale eyelids slid shut.

Revulsion pulled at Leo's throat.

"And you?" he asked.

One bright blue eye turned his way, curiously.

"What the hell are you?"

A hiss of disapproval slipped from the monster.

"Now, now, love," the child purred, patting at its slender neck. "Leonardo is our guest. He deserves to know whose company he keeps."

She turned to face the turtle again, an older countenance and refined dignity falling over her face like an invisible mask.

"My name is Messis, Leonardo, that was no lie. And, just like you, I am unique to this world."

"A diamond among coal," the beast spat.

Annoyance filled her expression and she rolled a look to her slave, silencing it. "A rarity indeed," she continued, still speaking to Leo. "If ever I had a race or heritage, it has long been forgotten. But I have been here, Leonardo, for a very long time. Surviving out of sight and out of mind, feeding off humanity as I can.

I have seen the wonders of the world rise and fall into decay. I witnessed the might of Egypt. I saw the fall of Persia. I have heard the roar of the Coliseum's crowd and tasted their lust for blood. I heard the rumors of kingdoms rising in the wild North. I felt the passion stirring in the hearts of the Crusaders. In time, I managed to smuggle my way onto a passage across the sea. Back when I was young and impetuous and just as idealistic about the New World as the men who came to claim it as their own."

Her eyes grew distant and thoughtful. "What intriguing new concepts the native people had to offer. So different from the mindset I had grown to know from the Europeans. I am grateful to have found this New World, to have had the chance to watch it grow and thrive."

She hummed to herself before her nostalgic smile faded and she glanced down to Leo again.

"You ask what I am? I am a plague, Leonardo, and very successful one. My hunts require many participants. You see, I only take the most...influential moments of a person's life. Their greatest triumphs and most devastating pitfalls. Good or ill, those are the ones that are the most potent. That linger. Jobs, busywork, the brushing of teeth, none of that holds any interest to someone like me. I only get so many hours from each reaping. To gain any true satisfaction requires much work on behalf of my servants."

Messis sent another sly smile to her monstrosity.

Leonardo watched as the monster's tail curled and swayed with delight. It dropped its foul maw onto her narrow, pale shoulder. As she set her cheek against its brow, the turtle felt his fingers and toes prickle back to life. His heart sank in relief. At least whatever she had done to him, it wasn't permanent. His thoughts were coming back around, shedding the fog of confusion and bewilderment.

Leaving a very, _very_ pissed off ninja turtle in their wake.

"How?" he ground out.

Messis looked to him.

"How does that make you a plague? If..." he winced and grasped at an ache in his shoulder. "If you did all this...why has no one heard about it?"

If there was one thing he had learned in all his life, it was that mega egos loved to hear themselves talk. This thing, whatever she was, had already proven it of herself. The longer he could keep her rattling on, the better chance he had of figuring a way out of this nightmare.

"Oh, but they _have_," the girl replied, taking the bait. She stood, her small frame towering over him. His fingers curled against the stone, strength stirring beneath his skin. Dark eyes watched her, warily, waiting for her to continue.

"Black Death," she said softly. "The Bubonic, Influenza, Tuberculosis, the Spanish Flu, Smallpox, even a few not so easily named back when I was in my prime. These have all been the handiwork of my servants and yet no mortal has ever known my name without already being mine." She lifted her eyes to the gray ceiling. "Just as they won't this time."

Leo glanced upward as well, a heavy coldness pooling in his stomach. "The city..."

"The city." She drew a breath through her nose and let it out with a satisfied hum. "How could I resist? So many lives...so many perspectives _of _this life. All gathered in one place. For one like me, it's an open invitation. But there is so much work to do," she added with a look to her slave.

Its empty eyes glittered beneath her attention and it inched closer, dropping its snout into her offered palm.

"I won't fail you," it clacked, "I will bring you what you need. Lives to sustain you, hands to serve you..." It sank lower on its haunches, bringing its hideous face to her level. "And the heart of fire you saw in Raphael." The name poured from its jaw like a poison and cut through Leo's paralysis. "It won't be denied you much longer."

Leo wheezed out his breath, cursing the weakness she'd infected him with. His palms spread over the ground, bracing his weight as he focused on getting off the ground. He thought of Raph still out there, searching for him already. He thought of Mikey and Donnie who had, undoubtedly, joined this nightmare by now.

He thought of the moment they might have to face this demon without him.

He thought of the instant they would realize that their brother was no longer their brother.

His teeth drew tightly together and he turned his fists downward, pressing his knuckles into the stone. He leaned forward, cling to the faint spark of defiance that still burned within him.

"_No_..."

Both the child and her grotesque slave hesitated. Leonardo's entire frame shook as he fought the ancient will compressing his own. He locked eyes with those gleaming irises and saw a small, patronizing smile creep over the innocent mask.

"Leonardo," she said in warning.

He wouldn't let her take his city.

He wouldn't let her take a soul from of it.

For damn sure, he wouldn't let her touch his brothers.

Teeth bared in exertion, he kicked off the wall again and charged. Well, he stumbled and almost went down again, but he was rushing forward against her orders and that was something.

That was something.

He lifted a fist, feeling the emptiness of the threat even as he did so, but a moment before he reached them, his vision clouded over with a gray mist. He tripped and hit his shoulder off the floor, sliding right through their legs as if they, or he, were made of nothing more than vapor. His carapace met the base of the stone seat solidly enough, however, and Leo grunted with the impact. He staggered back to his feet with a desperate fling of his arm, his dark eyes wild and searching.

Both remained where they stood, though the creature had lowered its head and the ridges of its spine seemed to stand even more prominently from the rest of its flesh. Messis looked disappointed, her thumb stroking along the other's scaly neck as she considered the turtle.

"You know, I heard somewhere that a true warrior acknowledges when he's been defeated, Leonardo," she said. "Perhaps my expectation of you have been too high."

He straightened his shoulders, his chin falling stubbornly. Starting forward, he shook his head again. "You haven't won any..."

Warm droplets rained over his shoulder just as something soft swept past his vision, wiping a hot line across his cheek. He froze even as that knowing smile appeared once more. Twisting around, he looked up into the writhing mess of dripping tendrils that were hanging just inches above his head.

Uh-oh.

He was struck from behind as a spike of pain pierced the base of his neck. Crying out, he flung his hand back, instinctively, and his fingers closed around a cord that felt horribly too much like flesh. Revulsion snapped his hand away and he felt an ugly tug pull at the new hole biting through his spine. Swearing beneath his breath, he lunged to the side, trying to wrench the foul thing right from the ceiling.

Unfortunately, the tether held and Leo was brought down to his knees his breath hissing between his teeth.

Soft steps circled around to his side. "Collect yourself, Leonardo. You are embarrassing yourself."

His eyes cracked open, rolling up to the young face above him. "Get it...get it..._g-get it_..."

She reached out, curling her own fingers over the dripping, mucus-coated vine,

"Now, why would I remove it?" Messis asked, "I did warn you of the dangers concerning the feeders, didn't I?" She tipped her head sweetly. "Besides, this is how you and I will truly get to know one another. You will become me, I will become you. What you cherish, I will cherish. What you despise, so will I. I will tend the fire of your passions and every philosophy you've begun to explore, I will complete." She touched her tongue to the back of her teeth. "Through _my_ eyes you will witness the world long after your precious city has turned to ash. Then you will see that your sacrifice became your greatest reward." Lifting her free hand, she slid her palm along his cheek. "When you can truly see me on that day, you will _sing_ your gratitude, little one."

Leo flinched from her touch with a hiss and she let him go, allowing the cord to slither from her grip. Giving him a wink, she pushed herself to her feet and sent a grin to her slathering puppet. "Shall we begin, then?"

It gave a delighted snarl, its shark-like eyes leering at Leonardo for a beat longer before dipping its head. It bent spindle-thin legs and leapt towards the wall, disappearing into the shadows. Leo watched it go as feverish shivers began to take his muscles.

Small fingers cupped beneath his chin and, once more, Messis filled his vision. Gritting his teeth, he dropped his brow in defiance, not trusting his own voice to utter a word without cracking. With the pain in his neck burrowing even deeper, he doubted he could have come up with a clever little quip anyway.

She must have caught the intent in his eyes, however, because she let out a laugh. "Oh, there is a fire in you, Leonardo, no doubt of that. But your stoicism is in vain. Don't you realize that you've already granted me access to everything I need?"

He trembled again, cursing himself for allowing the show of weakness.

"You should be wary when you share your heart. You never know who just might demand a little bit more." Her eerie eyes gleamed in triumph. "In trying to comfort a frightened child, you cracked open a doorway to your very thoughts and secrets and fears. You offered me a sample of the life behind your eyes. Now, I want it all."

Her hand lashed out, thin fingers fencing the ugly injury over his spine. Leo rose higher on his knees with a muffled grunt of pain.

"Give me Saki, Leonardo," she said, a growl underlying her light voice. "Give me the Shredder and all you loathe. Give Karai and April. Casey Jones, who just slipped from my grasp. Give me Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo." Her smile spread wider and smoke ghosted from behind her teeth. "Give me Splinter, young one, and despair."

Leo struggled against her grip, weakly, but there was more at work than the strength of her hand. As each name rolled off her tongue, he felt frigid barbs pierce his resolve and numb his resilience.

In the distant, most remote part of his mind, Leo saw himself wrenching back from her. He imagined the shock that would cross her face when he spit into that horrible little face. In reality, however, he could only watch in detached horror as his body went slack beneath her touch. His eyes dilated, entranced by the gleam within hers.

"Tell me a story, Leonardo," Messis breathed, hovering just above him. "One about you."

Words spilled from him, reaching back and excavating the farthest memories in his consciousness. The story of his father and brothers and their life in the sewers. All of it swirled together in greater detail than he had ever divulged to anyone before. His jaw and mouth moved without his consent, unfolding his life piece by piece.

And there was nothing he could do to stop it.

* * *

><p>AN: Back to reality next chapter...you're thoughts, please?


	10. Chap 9: Into the Sewers

**Disclaimer: ** TMNT and all related characters do not belong to me.

Into the Sewers

Splinter needed a moment.

Just one moment of selfishness where he wasn't required to know what to do or how to respond to the news that had just ripped his world apart. He needed the chance to reel with the blinding white panic of a parent that has turned around to find that their child is no longer beside them.

Leonardo was gone. Taken by someone (some_thing_) that Splinter did not understand.

He had known fear before. After all, they had enemies to spare. Oroku Saki. Karai. Bishop. Even his old foe, Draco. All of them had threatened his family at one time or another, and more than once they had almost succeeded in destroying what the rat had fought so long to protect. But any one of them would have been a blessing over this insidious shadow that had come to steal his son away. At least then he would have known how to retaliate, how to fight back and bring his son home.

Instead, they now faced a parasite that could not only invade the body, but the mind as well. A creature that possessed the ability to turn friend against friend and brother against brother. Even with all he knew of this strange world, it was hard to fathom that such power could really exist.

He blinked and found the edge of his vision was smeared. His tongue was fixed to the roof of his mouth, and a tightness was filling his chest as loop after iron-linked loop of panic compressed him, crushing his lungs beneath an onslaught of fear.

Life could not be asking him to fight this battle.

Not after all they had faced so far.

It just couldn't.

"Mast'a?"

He started, drawing in a breath as the world ahead of him cleared.

He was still standing at the foot of the examination table where Raphael sat. The rat's palms were pressed flat against the table's cool surface like some feeble attempt to secure him to the world he had known not an hour ago. A world where his children were safe and this kind of monster only existed in the movies Michelangelo watched late at night. Dark eyes fell into the dented first aid kit between his hands, helplessly. Just beyond its lid lay the discarded cloths he had used to treat Raphael's wounds. They were scattered across the steel surface in a patchwork of white and bright red.

Raphael's blood.

The evidence of the fight his son had endured.

"Mast'a?" His name came softer now, pressed with more urgency.

Splinter's head lifted to find Raphael waiting for him. With his bizarre story having come to a close, he was waiting for his father's reaction. Waiting for something, anything, to spill from the rat. Be it tears or wrath, he was willing to take it...and his eyes shone with the tears that believed he deserved whatever was coming for him. Splinter's chest twisted to see that crushed expression filling his brazen son's face.

His moment, it seemed, was up.

He let out his breath, releasing the paralyzing dread that he had allowed to encircle him. Pushing back his shoulders, he shook himself free of those dark coils of despair. He had no time for wallowing. He were matters to attend to.

The first and foremost sitting directly in front of him.

Reaching out, Splinter rose to his toes, ignoring the sharp sting in his bad leg as the muscles pulled. Raphael watched him, still caught between expecting the rebuke he deserved for allowing his brother to be lost and the quiet comfort he had known from his father before. But when gentle fingers cupped his cheek and slowly brought his head forward and down, he did not resist. Splinter touched their foreheads together before drawing his son into a fierce embrace. Finding himself trapped within his father's unyielding embrace, Raphael's ever present fortitude dissolved.

The turtle hunched forward as a muffled sob managed to break past his teeth. His arms came about the rat's back, fingers clutching at the worn fabric of his robe. He buried his beak into Splinter's neck and everything he had witnessed that night came wheezing from him in a low, mournful groan. His heart breaking, Splinter set his chin to the top of the turtle's head. He tightened his grasp on Raphael, willing that his son might feel the same strength he had possessed in his youth.

"It will be all right, Raphael," he whispered.

The young warrior grew still at the promise, resting a moment longer in his father's grasp. Then, he sniffed and sat back on the table, looking thin and exhausted. "Sure, Mast'a," he muttered with a weary grin. "I know."

Returning the wane smile, he let Raphael go and drew away with a sigh of his own. "Donatello."

The inventor materialized at his shoulder, as if he'd been there all along. His desk chair spun in a lazy circle behind him. Michelangelo lingered halfway across the room, unsure if he was expected to join them as well.

"Have you made any progress?"

Donatello shook his head. "Sorry, sensei, the tracking system's coming up empty. Either Leo's gone too far underground to catch a satellite signal or...or he's traveled beyond the grid's limits."

"And how far does this grid of yours search?"

"Most of the city. And Jersey."

Splinter flicked an ear, thoughtfully. "Then perhaps it is time we turn aside from technology."

"We were thinking the same thing!" Michelangelo agreed, drawing even with Donatello's shoulder. "Donnie thought we should try to hit up Casey again. You know," he rapped a knuckle off his own temple, "since he shared rental space with this thing and all. He might know more about what this thing is up to."

"Ya think I didn' ask 'im?"

The malice in those quiet words brought all eyes back to Raphael. He looked to all of them, something shifting behind his eyes before he dropped his gaze to the floor. "Casey don' know any more'n we do."

"A few hours have gone by," Donatello said. "Maybe he's remembered something he couldn't when you last saw him." His brother sent him a dubious glance. Unperturbed, Donatello lifted his shoulders. "You said it yourself that Casey was totally out of it when it...when all of this happened." He shifted a little uneasily, trying to ignore the hesitation that had slipped through. "And you were dealing with shock and probably a concussion of your own."

Darkness flickered over Raphael's features at the implication. Like he didn't feel a concussion was a worthy excuse for the possibility that his memory wouldn't be on top form. Splinter's heart sank at the unseen wall of stubbornness rose behind his son's eyes. Raphael set his weight forward, his toes landing on the concrete. He had to grab at the edge of the table to keep himself on his feet, but shot Donatello a dangerous look when the inventor took an instinctive step forward.

"And what d'ya expect me ta do while you're out interrogatin' Casey 'bout the same things I jus' tol' ya?" he said. "Ya wan' me ta sit here while Leo's out there wanderin' around wit' this thing? Like we haven' wasted enough time fixin' me up and waiting on your damn grid-"

"Raphael!" Splinter snapped. His son's teeth clacked as he ceased his rising tirade.

Donatello folded his arms across his chest, his brown eyes narrowing as they locked with seething gold. Splinter felt his shoulders sag.

For all their differences, Raphael and Donatello's stubbornness were near mirror images of one another. Raphael may have been more vocal (about everything really) but Splinter knew there was no budging Donatello once he had set his mind to something. He would break himself to pieces before admitting defeat about anything, especially when his hot-headed sibling was involved.

The last thing Leonardo needed was for his middle siblings to engage in a battle of wills.

Splinter wasn't certain he himself could endure it.

Not now.

He reached out, setting his fingers over Raphael's emerald shoulder. "My son, Donatello is right. This trouble began with Mr. Jones. It is only fitting that the search for Leonardo would begin with him as well."

Raphael glanced to him, the hollowness beneath his eyes becoming more defined and Splinter lifted his ears at the haunted expression that had overtaken his face. He shook his head, "There's no point..."

"Then you do not need to accompany us. You may stay and rest."

Panic sliced behind Raphael's eyes and he looked from his father to his brothers helplessly. Donatello's expression remained neutral, but Michelangelo tipped his head, thoughtfully, as he considered the hunted stance his fearless older brother had taken on. At length, Raphael clenched his teeth and turned back to Splinter.

"I ain't jus' gonna sit here waitin', Mast'a."

"I know." Splinter gave him a bemused smile. "After all these years, Raphael, I would expect no less of you."

Donatello let out an indignant squawk. "But, sensei, his head! He can't just -"

Splinter's dark eyes cut to the inventor, silencing him. "However, given the injuries you've sustained tonight, I would insist that you do not go alone."

Raphael frowned, and then he dropped his chin in understanding.. He leaned forward to peer around Donatello.

"Well, Mike, what do you say to that?"

The youngest lifted his brow and looked to Splinter, who gave him a single, encouraging nod. His face split into a mischievous grin and he shrugged. "I'm just wondering why we're all still standing around."

Raphael's brow fell and he turned to fix his eyes on the lab door. He strode forward, ignoring Donatello but dipping his head towards his father, gratefully, as he made for the exit.

As his younger brother made to follow, the rat caught him by the elbow.

"Michelangelo..." he said.

His son paused to turn to him, and then he reached out and gave his father's fingers a gentle squeeze. "Don't worry, sensei. I got him."

With that, he pulled free and darted after Raphael, disappearing into the living room and then out into the world beyond. Splinter watched them go, feeling as he ever did, that his sons too easily were able to slip from his grasp. He swallowed and cast a glance aside to where Donatello was watching after his siblings, a torn expression twisting his features.

"Whenever you're ready, Donatello."

The inventor started at his voice, pulling his gaze from his brothers' retreat to meet the rat's gaze. Then, he nodded and spun on his toes. He went to the far cabinets to pull his battered duffel bag from a low shelf. Tossing it open on the clean end of the examination table, he became a blur of movement, going from drawer to cabinet to shelf, snatching up this and that as he passed and returning to fit each item into the bag with practiced ease.

With his final son on the move, Splinter allowed himself a lingering glance towards the lab store. His hands squeezed the head of his cane, and his stomach churned at the possibility that he had just released two more of his children into the same world as the phantom that had stolen Leonardo away.

He closed his eyes, feeling the weight of his years settling more comfortably across his shoulders.

"Be safe," he whispered.

* * *

><p>In spite of the nonchalant grin he had summoned up in the moment, the ache in Michelangelo's stomach had not abated in the least. Rather, he felt that it had only gained strength from the moment the damp sewer air fell upon his skin. If Raphael felt it, Mikey didn't know, because as his brother broke free of the lair, he just dropped his chin and charged forward. Mikey fell into step a pace behind him, for once suffering himself to remain in second place.<p>

The look that had taken over Raph's face back in the lab never strayed far from the youngest's thoughts as they ran. Something about their conversation had shaken his brazen older brother. Something he would probably never admit, but Mikey had seen it, just as he knew Splinter and Donnie had seen it. And the fact did not sit well with the youngest at all.

He found that the sewers felt colder than they should have for that time of year. Storm or no, there was more than a chill lingering on the air. The tunnels were darker too, like the shadows had crept closer to the lights than they had ever dared before. The rain had also swelled the waterways, transforming their familiar, damp tunnels into a raging underground river. The transformation nagged at him and he found himself glancing over his shoulder again and again despite the fact that he knew they were alone.

He hoped it was just Raph's crazy story playing tricks on him.

Problem was, he _believed_ his brother's crazy story.

And that didn't bode well for them at all.

They wound their way down street after street, following a path they both knew well. Mikey thought they were headed back towards Casey's apartment complex, but Raphael pulled up short while they were still a few blocks away. Panting heavily, he began to pace back and forth before the pipeline that would run beneath their friend's home, glaring down into the darkness as he growled and muttered beneath his breath. Mikey managed to catch a couple of the surrounding street names and figured his brother was running through a mental map of the area.

Or working his way through every possible route Leo might have taken in his flight.

He folded his arms against the thought and watched Raph stew in silence.

This really sucked.

He didn't miss the steep rise and fall of his brother's shoulders during this brief rest. He knew the other's eyes were still too glittery and had the tendency to slip out of focus now and again. By all rights, Raphael probably had no business walking around, much less running about the sewers in the dead of night. But he said nothing. Like Splinter, he knew he'd never stop Raph from searching for Leo, no matter what condition he was in. Besides, he preferred life with his head still attached.

He could only wait and hope that they found something before Raph's bull-headed endurance decided to give out on them.

Raphael paused at last, landing on a decision. He took off again without a word. Where he was headed, or by what logic he had settled on this direction, Michelangelo did not know. But he didn't question this either.

They traveled down the new route for a while, never branching off to the left or the right. The river carried on beside them, as oblivious to them as Raphael was to it, but Mikey watched the water's level carefully from the corner of his eye, years of childhood warnings blazing through him as they ventured even further into the night.

He didn't like all the noise bouncing off the walls. It was unnerving to have his ears taken away from him on his home turf.

Especially when some foreign monster, whatever it was, was wandering the sewers with them.

He blinked when, up ahead, Raphael suddenly picked up his speed. Beyond him, Mikey spotted that the end of their walkway was fast approaching. Raph pulled forward, gathering the power of his legs beneath him before he planted his foot on the lip of the concrete ledge and then launched himself into the air.

It was an easy, thoughtless move, one they did countless times every day. Raphael arched up and over the torrent of water gracefully.

It was the landing that got him.

The moment his feet touched down on the opposite walk, his knees buckled. His weight pulled him sharply to the right and his shoulder bounced off the wall. Mikey's gut twisted as his brother's carapace followed, scraping angrily against the bricks and then spinning him aside. His momentum hurtled him along another two ungainly steps before he finally went down.

"_Raphie!_"

Mikey's voice broke over the roar of the water a second before he followed after him. He grunted in his own landing and stumbled in haste to his brother's sprawled form. Dropping to his knees, he slid in beside Raph's shoulder. Mikey set his hand over the scarred carapace, kneeling low to peer into the other's face. "Raphie, you all right?"

One bleary gold eye rolled upwards, but he got no answer. Clenching his teeth, Mikey gave him a halfhearted shake. "Come on, Raph, talk to me, bro."

Raph blinked up at him, bewilderment filling his face as he realized his was on the ground. He stared at his brother, warily, for a moment before he suddenly surged upwards with a grunt. His footing slipped out beneath him and he hit his hip. Growling in frustration, he tried again with no better results. Mikey reached for his arm and scowled himself when it was batted aside.

"Okay, you want to know what we don't have time for?" he shouted over the din, swiveling a finger between them. "'Cause this is a good example of it right here!"

Raphael's brow fell, obstinately, but Mikey only had to wait another minute before his brother let out a defeated sigh and suddenly leaned into him. Catching Mikey by the nape of his neck, he allowed his brother to stagger them both upright. The younger turtle kept one arm wrapped about the curve of the other's shell, the other stretched across Raph's plastron to keep him from toppling forward again.

Glancing further along the walk, he spotted the shadow of a door set into the tunnel wall not too far ahead. He hitched himself closer to his brother, and set off towards it, half dragging the larger turtle along. Raph's breath rasped, his toes drug with every step, and Mikey felt every pound his brother loaned him by the time he managed to haul them over that short distance.

He reached the door, blowing out a sigh as the knob gave easily beneath his hand. He nudged it inward and helped maneuver Raphael inside.

He swept his free hand over the wall, finding a light switch to a flickering little bulb above their heads. The room turned out to be an old break room for maintenance workers complete with an old mini fridge and a shelf of cleaning supplies directly in front of them. It was heavy with the smell of mildew and disuse, but it was still a refuge from the open sewers.

And they had definitely survived in worse.

Easing Raph to the floor beside the supply shelf, Mikey swiveled on the balls of his feet to swing the door shut. His head buzzed with the relief of blotting out even a bit of that relentless current. He turned towards the shelves, clicking his fingers hopefully as he scanned the items, and he let out a cheer when he spotted the twisted plastic of a water bottle case near the floor.

He pulled one of the containers free, wondering briefly if he should be checking for an expiration date. He cracked into it and sniffed at the trembling surface of the water, and then shrugged as he turned back towards his brother.

Raph had scooted higher against the shelf, his hand cupped over his shoulder's scraped flesh. He was scowling at nothing, as if the empty air before him had offered some personal offense just for him.

Mikey sank down beside him. He made no move to touch his brother, but bent low to peer at the dry, pale marks that the brickwork had left behind. His eyes flicked up to meet Raph's bleary gaze.

"You're having a rough night, bro," he said, handing the bottle over.

"We ain't going back home, Mike." Raph snapped, automatically. "I jus' lost my balance for a sec, it's fine."

"Is it?" Mikey asked, rocking back to sit against the shelf as well. He stretched out his legs. "There's not a lot that seems fine about tonight, man. Like, none of it, ya know?"

Raph's jaw twitched and he sniffed, quickly glancing aside. "Yeah, well. Is what it is, ain't it?"

"Again, I ask, _is_ it?" Mikey lifted a brow.

Raph frowned. Then he groaned and slapped a hand over his eyes. "Ah, crap, what ya thinkin', Mike?"

"Okay, here's the thing," Mikey turned to face him, now crossing his legs. "You and Casey have been there to back each other up in every mess you've gotten yourselves into ever since you dragged that nut job into our lives. You can say we're out here looking for Leo all you want, but you know just as much as I do that we're just running around blind right now." Raph growled, so Mikey barreled forward before he could snap back a reply. "I guess I'm wondering _why_ we're doing this instead of going to April's with Donnie and Splinter to figure out what the hell is going on?"

He expected anger. He expected sarcasm and a snarled rebuke.

He got none of it.

Raphael only studied him for a moment, his golden eyes shifting back and forth between Mikey's. Then a soft and sudden sound of exhaustion slipped through his nose and all of the tension seeped out of the warrior's frame. His head fell back and the shadows beneath his eyes only seemed darken further and Michelangelo marveled at the frightening transformation that had swept over his brother in mere seconds.

"I can't, Mike," Raph whispered. He swept his fingers up and over his head, skimming the fresh bandages that hid the ugly gash and the accompanying knot beneath it. "I can't…Not yet… I can't see 'im yet."

"Why not?"

"'Cause I _can't_ see 'im…without seein' _it_ right along with 'im." Raph swallowed, thickly. "I can't see 'im wit'out knowin' what it did to 'im. What it did ta Leo. An' I jus' keep seein' it. Hearin' it. The way it used 'is face, 'is words, 'is grin..." A low growl worked in his throat. "I _let_ it happen to Leo. Trying to save Casey, I let it take 'im. An' now…" He lifted his head, looking around as if he might find their missing sibling among the cleaning supplies. "I don' know what ta do...but I know...I don' wanna see Casey now..."

Michelangelo watched him, his hands folded, helplessly, in his own lap. He let the quiet stretch between them for a moment, processing everything his brother had just muttered without ever looking directly at him. Then, the younger turtle gave a decisive nod.

"All right. No Casey. Not yet, dude."

Raphael glanced aside to find Mikey's mouth was curved, but there was none of his usual goofiness behind it. Reaching out, he settled his hand over his brother's shoulder, his blue eyes glinting in the gloom. "And you didn't let anything happen, Raph. No one blames you for this. We're just gonna set to work on gettin' him back, right?"

Raph sniffed again, and small smile tugged at his mouth. He let out a soft scoff. "How do you do that, Mike?"

Mikey tipped his head.

"How do you always keep up that damn hope of yours?"

"Well, I don't like to brag about it, but much like a certain Disney Princess, I too, am infused with the power of a single drop of sunlight."

His brother's brow lifted." You're the weirdest guy I know."

"It's the privilege I get for being the young and ridiculously good-looking one," Mikey grinned, lifting his shoulder, haplessly. Raphael snorted and didn't reply, returning his focus to his own fingers. Mikey sighed.

"You'll see, Raphie," he said softer now. "We'll get him back."

After another moment, something shifted behind Raph's eyes and he turned his head to look at his little brother. "Hey, Mike?"

"Yeah, man?"

"I'm glad ya came wit' me."

"Well, my Friday night plans kinda went down the toilet so…"

He sniggered as Raph's calloused palm smacked off the back of his skull and he shifted out of arm's reach. Raphael finally set to work on the water, making a face after his first swallow and checking the label before he returned to it. Mikey waited until he was halfway through before he pressed forward again. "So, you gonna be okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be right." Raph replied, huskily. He set the water beside him on the lower shelf and swiped a knuckle across his beak. "We bett'a keep moving." He shifted his weight and then lifted his hand towards the other. "Get me up."

Mikey hopped to his feet to oblige, catching hold of Raphael's outstretched wrist.

Their attempt to get Raph back on his feet went far smoother than it had out in the sewers. He only swayed once and sent such a glare of warning that Mikey knew better than to try to steady him. He was just readying himself for a few trial steps when...

_Bee dee! Bee dee! Bee dee!_

Mikey nearly buckled at the high-pitched alarm that came buzzing from his hip. He slapped at his belt, pulling his shell cell free and flipping it open. He realized that in their haste, he had never turned off Donnie's tracking system. It was still scanning their surroundings, its bright gridlines illuminating their dim hideout with a pale green light.

Exchanging a glance, the brothers moved closer to one another, looking down to find a pair of bright spots huddling together on the screen before them.

Two lines over to the left of them, another dot was moving steadily along the black screen.

"Raph…"

"Is that-?" Raphael breathed, making a grab for the phone. The moment his fingers brushed the screen, the dot winked out of sight.

Their elation went with it.

"No, no, no!" Mikey cried, smacking the phone against his palm in vain. "Raphie, did you see-?"

"Where was it?" Raph demanded, "Which street was it on?"

"This one… That's…" Mikey squinted. "That's Fourth Avenue. Yeah, yeah, two blocks over."

Raphael peered at the small gridlines himself and then gave a sharp nod. He thrust the phone back at his brother and Mikey fumbled to catch it. He looked up just in time to see the door swinging on its hinges.

He swore Raph's dust trail was still hanging in the air.

Well, now, that wouldn't do at all.

He shoved his phone back into his belt and sprinted after him.

* * *

><p>AN: Holy crow, I am lame and I apologize. Queen of Procrastination that I am, that hiatus was just somewhat ridiculous! I felt like we had to see these guys before we got back to the worm, unfortunately, this chapter dug its heels in and refused to be written. I pry should have thrown it out a while ago, but hey, sometimes my Norwegian stubbornness kicks in and I refuse to admit defeat. For 10 months. In a row. I should probably work on that...Anyhoo!

Next chapter: We finally get to see a worm on the hunt. Seriously, this time! XD

I know I don't deserve them, but I would still love to hear your thoughts and critiques, please! Thank-ya!


	11. Chap 10: Gone Astray

**Disclaimer: **TMNT and all related characters are not mine, naturally.

**Grammar Nazi**: I'm so sorry, your email did not come over on your review, so I couldn't respond! But yes, if you're up for, have at it at these chapters. I'll be the first to admit, I'm not always on par when it comes to grammar. And I always appreciate the help! Thank you! :D

A/N: Hey, guys! Hope you're enjoying your summer! As promised, here we have Harvester on the move. Little break from the turtles (which I didn't notice until I was editing, sorry!) but we'll catch up with some of the guys again next chapter.

Warnings...eh...a pair of OC's, Harvester's POV, violence, blood, and peril on the streets. If you're a fan of that sort of thing, I hope you enjoy! Thanks for reading!

Chapter 10: Gone Astray

_ I'd like to think that my return to the real world could have been spectacular. I _could_ have risen out of the depths of my own subconscious, hungry for the world that my Lady had just unleashed me upon. I can envision an effortless stirring of my host's limbs, harkening to my command as if they were my own. Up we would have risen and I would have set both his gaze and my ambition towards the darkness above us where the untold mass of humanity teemed._

_ It would have been glorious._

_ Unfortunately, that's not exactly how stepping from one plane of existence to the next works._

_ I've found._

_ I can't say that I truly understand_ how_ the whole thing works. It's not my business to understand, I guess, but, I can say that when my Lady had first drawn me into the core of Her mind for my confrontation with Leonardo, I had gone with Her easily. It had been like being tugged along by some gentle, yet steady, current. All that had been required of me was to let go and She had done the rest. It had been quiet, pleasant; a moment when all that existed was She and I. And oh, how I relished every second of that grey and silent journey into the mists of Her mind. I had emerged, giddy and excited, into the cavern where I would truly meet my stubborn and rebellious host and watch Her bring him to his knees._

_ In hindsight, I think She might have shielded me from the sheer brunt force of the transportation during that first round. She must have known the...effort it takes to jump from mind to mind. Or is it reality to reality? _

_ Either way, coming back wasn't quite so pleasant._

_ Had she not been so distracted by trying to still Leonardo's incessant squalling, I have no doubt that the return journey would've gone just as smoothly as the departure. But Her guest was adamant in his thin belief that he was somehow capable of defying Her, and required Her attention more than I did._

_ Witless sap, I would've laughed at his naiveté , if it hadn't cost me so much._

_ The moment She released the mental cords binding me to Her side, there was no gentle drifting back to the world. Instead, it was more like I had been suspended at the far end of an extended rubber band that had just been set loose. _

_ I _catapulted_ through darkness and gray space, flung at such a velocity that I was dashed into the far wall of the cramped enclosure inside my own head._

_ I writhed at the impact, curling myself against Leonardo's skin in a desperate attempt at self preservation. My return to flesh and blood reality reignited the few nerves I possessed out of their catatonic reverie and brought everything sizzling awake. The shock of it reverberated down my proboscis and jabbed Leonardo's nervous system like a cattle prod._

That _went over well. _

_ His lungs pulled in a painful gulp of air, humid with the heat of my Lady's presence. His eyes sprang open on their own accord, and I was bombarded by a smear of darkness highlighted by colors that I couldn't begin to decipher in the avalanche of data pummeling my brain. I felt his insides aching with hunger pains and his throat itching with thirst. White noise blazed from his motor cortex, hissing that the seated position I had left him in had stemmed the blood flow to his lower extremities. Everything below the waist was tingling and numb and pleading with his absent higher functions to shift his posture._

_ I didn't care. This sudden swirl of information had left me dizzy and nauseous. That nausea poured into Leonardo's much larger stomach and I felt the sting of bile rising up his throat._

_ And then we were sliding, his shell scraping against my Lady's flank as we went keeling over to the right._

_ Oh, for the love of – –_

_ I bit down, tightening my jaw around our point of contact and cracking the seals of clotted blood that had formed around them. My will and the remains of the turtle's instinct collided and together we managed to keep from falling face-first into the dirt. I hauled us upright, grunting with the effort and focusing on the taste of his blood while his senses danced around me. They wailed of cramped muscles and sore limbs and the weariness that still clung to him from the trauma of having half his mind drained out of him._

_ So I did the only thing that comes natural to someone like me._

_ Releasing my hold on him, I shifted higher and sank my proboscis into a fresh patch of skin along the curve of his neck. Hot drops seeped over my mouth. Salty, strong, and touched by that potent tang that had not been present in Casey's blood. I drew down on it, leaving the maelstrom to swirl inside him while I fed off his strength, pulling from his ample stores and squeezing venom back into his bloodstream at every pause._

_ His enormous heart began to slow, bringing down his body's frantic reaction to my intrusion. The alerts and warnings blaring through his head retreated into a more manageable flow until they had all but ground to a halt. I ignored them, busying myself with my own needs until I had been sated._

_ When I finally turned my attention back to the state of my host, it was to find peace and quiet waiting for me. He had fallen to the allure of my venom again, and now an emptiness spread beneath me where life, vitality, and his unending _personality_ had once thrived._

_I loved the silence._

_ The basic functions of his brain were still firing, keeping the blood pumping and the lungs drawing and expelling air, but now there was no resistance as I moved my will forward. I sank the probing fingers of control back into vacant gray matter and felt the first stirrings of response when I quirked my proboscis into the new length of nerves that ran beneath me._

_ Reconnecting us, fusing us, and bringing everything that Leonardo possessed to my disclosure._

_ Now, he was truly mine._

_ I shifted his weight, _my_ weight, to allow blood back towards the toes. Lifting my head, I pulled my eyes into focus, finding shapes littered throughout the night, dimly illuminated by the ethereal glow of those strange blue veins that spread up the walls of Her den. I drew a breath, filling my nose with Her strong scent._

_ Something was straining against my plastron._

_ I lifted my hands, fumbling with the weight of them, to tug at the strap that ran from my shoulder to hip. Even as I struggled with it, I recalled its presence from before. Leonardo had been accustomed to the weight, another part of him, and so I had not put much thought into it. But the rediscovery of that leather band across my chest left me feeling trapped and claustrophobic. I wrestled with the binding pressure for a moment before the buckle popped free. I shrugged those large shoulders and writhed my way out of the leather contraption before flinging it aside._

_ It clattered to the ground and something slipped from the sheath. I blinked at the bright, silvery glint of steel standing against the dimness. I tipped my head, retrieving the last visual memories I had from Casey's mind and a smirk crossed my mouth. _

_ Of course, Leonardo's weapons. _

_ Swords. No, something else…a katana...his katanas, I should say. That was it. They were important to him and he used them skillfully. Very skillfully. _

_ Like to cut me in half, for example._

_ A surge of heat rose up my chest and into my cheeks. I kicked at the mess of straps and buckles, snorting when clods of dark soil sprinkled over the bright steel. I turned away, scrubbing my palms over my free plastron and grinned to myself at the sudden prospect that I had taken one more piece of Leonardo's precious identity from him._

_ I sat there, enjoying my moment of petulant satisfaction, when I realized I was not so cut off from my Lady as I had first thought. I could still feel Her. There, shifting against the back of my mind, Her focus still divulged elsewhere, but everything in my host's body sagged with my relief. Her presence drew my attention from the buzzing swarm of gnats consuming my legs as the circulation made its way back to my calves and feet._

_ I cut off the connection to most of the pain receptors between us then. I didn't have time for his numb legs and hunger pains. Not while She was so close. I had a charge to complete, and I meant to see it through. With the turtle's legs or without them._

_ My Lady needed bodies._

_ I planted a foot beneath me, followed by the other, and I pushed myself up and up, feeling the distant sting of stretching muscles and tender nerves. I swayed for a moment, making minute corrections until those thick feet beneath me held firm and steady._

_ You know, for all the superiority that vertebrates regard themselves, they sure are finicky things._

_ So many parts just willing to break down._

_ They're just so vulnerable._

_ I made my way to the den's entrance with only the slightest limp impeding my progress. From there I worked my way upward, following the luminescent track of blue stretching along the length of the tunnel. By the time I was stepping out into the dry, cemented tunnel of men, the heat in Leonardo's legs had all but gone. Once again, the stirrings of excitement coiled through my stomach. _

_ I turned left to follow the tunnel back the way I had come. Now I took notice to the echoing roar of water running through the sewers all around me. I walked until the noise grew louder and the cement beneath my feet began to incline. Following walkways and crossing over thick pipes with all the grace of my host's ingrained instincts as water surged below._

_ I might have failed to procure Raphael for my Lady's collection (a thing that seared my pride). And although Leonardo had served as an acceptable substitute, it never strayed far from my thoughts that I had not truly delivered on what She had asked of me. _

_But this was my second chance. My redemption._

_ I could not fail Her again._

_ I was close now, so close to the world. I swear I could feel the heartbeat of its roaming masses toiling above my head. I could feel them, _all_ of them. That blind mass of humanity which relied so heavily in the false security of their homes and their routines, never veering to the left or right. They were a distracted race; oblivious and ignorant to the very _notion_ that something like me could ever exist. Let alone be coming for them._

_ Just as She preferred._

_ She would bring this city of men to its knees before they even knew they were in danger. One would go missing, then another, followed by four more, then ten, twenty, and _that's_ when they would begin to worry. That's when they would begin to wonder what was happening. Why it was happening. And most importantly, who would it happen to next?_

_ My Lady would be the invisible, nameless horror that would infect their multitude. She would leave them wailing in the night after long after She had feasted and gone. And _I _would be the one to initiate it all of it. I would be -_

_ Bee dee! Bee dee! Bee dee!_

_ My knees buckled at the shrill noise that suddenly erupted around me. It bounced off the stone walls, adding to the cacophony already created by the filthy river flowing by. I swiveled my head up and around, searching for the source. Then I felt a buzzing against the plates of my midsection. I discovered a small, round device quivering inside a pouch on the belt. I pulled it out, turning it over as it continued to beep and buzz. A bright red light was blinking rapidly near the top of it._

_ I gave it a shake. Flipped it upside down. Then side to side. _

_ Then I turned and threw it into the wall._

_ The device burst with satisfying crack and the pieces came dancing back towards my feet. Tipping my head, I snuck out a toe to help one of the larger pieces further along its path and into the water. It plopped into the greasy current and disappeared. _

_ "Hope that wasn't anything dear to you, Leo," I said, brushing my hands of the thing's demise. _

_ Then I froze, my palms still pressed together.__ I looked over the scattered pieces._

_ It _must_ have been dear to him._

_ Precious enough that he carried it on his person._

_ I peered down at the cracked cover, painted tan and green to mimic the design of a turtle shell. The flickering red light that had accompanied the beeping had died along with the device, but I had a sudden dread pooling in my stomach as I stared down at its remains._

_ Shell..._

Shell cell.

_ The words brought me back to the human's apartment. Before Leonardo. Before our fight. When the battle had consisted only of me and Casey. Those words had been popping through his mind like fireworks, bursting across it over and over while I fought to seize control of his nervous system._

Shell cell. Shell cell. Get the guys...

_ The guys who had turned out to be Leonardo and -_

_ No._

_ I lifted my gaze to the shadows stretching out in darkness behind me._

_ Somewhere in all that inky blackness, Raphael was coming for his brother._

_ For me._

_ I swiveled my torso around and bolted along the walkway. __I had to put as much distance between me and that little device as possible. __Much as I yearned for the chance at a rematch with the fiery-eyed turtle, I didn't have time for him now. Not with my second chance at stake. Not on the brink of Her assault against the city. _

_ I had to get away and then go up. Up into the convoluted streets where I would not be so easily tracked._

_ Even as I ran, however, my heart burned with fresh wrath against my adversary. Raphael dared try to hunt me down? Me? The servant of Messis and the new commander of his brother's flesh? Ha! __Let him try._

_ Let him keep trying. The next time, I'd gladly reunite him with his brother. _

_ I ran._

* * *

><p>Anne Brunner had no idea when she left her apartment that dreary morning that she was about to become a missing person's case. She never saw her attacker coming, simply because she had had no reason to look for one in the eight months she had been working at the bakery. Besides, in her mind, she had no reason to be abducted by the night. After all, she was the epitome of a nameless face in the endless crowds of New York.<p>

Nineteen years old, on the cusp of twenty, she was making it on her own for the first time, and in the big city no less. Nine months ago, she had left the endless fields of North Dakota to study accounting at NYU. Not an actress, or an aspiring model, she dressed to keep herself covered, used just enough makeup to be presentable (and therefore, stretch out her supply a few weeks longer). Obviously too broke to warrant the attention of any would-be thieves and she felt she was plain enough to dissuade any further, or fouler, attention. Aside from a thin scar that slid just above her right eyebrow (the fallout of a rock fight she and her brother had engaged in as kids), she didn't think she any real distinguishable features that would warrant a second glance from would-be perverts.

Unfortunately, she was still green enough to still think those were the only two dangers in this world.

On that rainy, miserable morning, she would learn differently.

A Dash of Sugar, the bakery where she worked, was only a few blocks from her little apartment. It was a quaint, narrow shop frequented by locals swinging in for breakfast pastries before trudging off to work. It was a bright place, full of the smell of dough and sugar, both powered and confection, and Anne enjoyed doing the prep work for them in the mornings.

Her boss, Sophie, was a bustling, bubbly socialite who knew the personal details of almost every customer that came through her door. She was also a fierce businesswoman; steely eyed and protective of her business, and Anne had been terrified of the woman for the first three months of her employment.

Slowly, though, the girl had found herself at home in the kitchen, making friends with the gals who ran the front, the maintenance guy, and even the high school duo who made up the weekend crew. It was a good fit for her and kept a little spending money in the bank while she was going to school. If she had a complaint, it would be the that back alley she had to cut into in order to use the employee's entrance had always left her skin crawling.

In the end, she had good reason for that.

The rain had started up again during the night and now it came drizzling down in silver sheets, pattering quietly off the hood of Anne's coat. It was still dark at four twenty-two in the morning, and her regular route was illuminated by the yellow glow of street lamps shining over the parked cars on her left, while the black windows of the stores lined her right, still hours away from opening. Anne walked, feeling peaceful and sleepy as her work tennies slapping off the soaked sidewalk and she hummed along with her iPod. Ever set to shuffle, it had turned up one of her Broadway selections. "On My Own," from _Les Miserables_. She grinned to herself.

A song about a single girl singing in the rain. Appropriate in a way, although Anne herself currently had no man to pine over. Still, she allowed herself to get lost in the melody as she passed by the derelict gold and coin shop that stood as the bakery's neighbor.

The shop's hidden camera peered out into the morning, ever steadfast in its watch. It snapped three photos of her as she passed by. A young woman, her frozen hands buried in the pockets of her coat and her head turned aside to look out over the street. Three photos that would soon be poured over by the detectives in the following weeks as they tried to explain how Anne failed to report to work in the building which lay not twenty feet further along the sidewalk.

For that, they would never have an answer.

Reaching the edge of the building, Anne turned a sharp right and cut through the narrow gap that separated the two businesses. As she emerged into the rear alley, she paused, thinking how the air always seemed so much closer and darker than it did out front. Especially on rainy mornings.

Though the small lamp that hung above their door did its best, it's 75 watts just barely seemed to hold the night at bay.

It was childish and ridiculous, but the cramped space spooked her. Beyond the gloom, it was hard to tell what lay in the shadows stretching out on either side of her. Though her past eight months had proven her fears were unfounded, Anne had never been able to fully shake the creepiness of the alley.

She knew it was silly. She was a grown up. She could handle a little dark. Everyone else seemed to manage okay, not that she had ever discussed her misgivings with her coworkers. Still, no ghoul had ever been there waiting for her. No hands had grabbed at her from the night. No psycho had ever popped out to kill her, knock on wood.

Maybe that's why she ignored the warning that tickled the back of her neck that morning.

She didn't notice the glittering black eyes that followed her steps up the low porch while he was still catching his breath. She never heard his shifting weight as he checked the alley behind him, searching for any sign that he was being followed. She didn't see the white of his teeth appear in a wicked grin.

Anne pulled her keys from her pocket, the silver tinkling filling the silence around her. Shaking out the little brass one to the bakery, she continued to hum along with the song, working to fit it into the old lock. She tipped the knob upward and wriggled the key back and forth before it slid home.

In her peripheral vision, a shadow shifted against the all the rest.

A hair lifted along her neck, followed by a few more.

Anne turned, pulling her ear bud free. The music was replaced by the quiet tapping of rain on the soaked pavement. Frowning, she lowered her chin and looked down the length of the alley, but there was nothing to discern anything from the surrounding darkness.

_Weird_, she thought.

It must've been a stray cat or something.

Something simple. Something real.

She looked down to the knob again, twisting the key aside.

Her forehead slammed off the ancient metal door.

A rush of air blew from her lungs, leaving in such a rush that nothing so organized as a scream managed to accompany it out. The hollow sound of the hit filled her head, knocking her senses askew, and then she was tumbling sideways off the short steps.

Her shoulder struck first, catching the brunt of her weight before the rest of her came down. Pain shot up her elbow as the pavement claimed a decent patch of skin through her coat's sleeve. Her mind raced to sort out what had just happened as she rolled to her back. She blinked, blearily, against the fine droplets misting down on her face. The light continue to buzz overhead, a million miles away.

A black silhouette moved over her, blotting out half the light.

She blinked again, thinking her vision must've been knocked off kilter too. The shape of the shadow did not hold true to the head and shoulders of a human's outline. Anne marveled at it, her muddled thoughts flicking through every potential alternative that had the ability to do this.

She came up empty.

Then, words were coming from the darkness, fueled by a kind of breathless excitement that left twisted her insides with dread.

"Well, isn't this a convenient little turn?" it chortled in a light voice. Lighter than she imagined something born of darkness could produce. "Oh, just look at you, love."

A hand came out of the night to sneak beneath her neck, cupping her gently as the shadow made to lift her. Thick fingers were pressed against the curve of her spine and with a sinking jolt, she realized that it was not four digits that were spread along her spine.

But two.

Anne bucked as everything within her suddenly protested against that alien touch. She kicked at the empty air behind the creature in vain and her arm came up to shove off its chest. Her palm struck something solid and _hard_ instead of giving flesh. Slick from the rain, her hand slipped and slid across whatever protective shield it was and she slammed her shoulder into his raised knee.

She bounced off ground again and scrambled for an escape.

The shadow made a grab for her, missed, and let out an annoyed growl.

Anne twisted to her stomach, soaking her knees on the wet pavement and tried to scuttle her way back toward the gap between the two buildings. Those terrible, heavy fingers raked up through her hair and swiveled into a painful fist. Anne finally let out a yelp of pain, her hand rising to clutch at the strong wrist above her head. She felt herself being drawn off the pavement a few inches and then the shadow smashed her head back down.

Fire bit across her nose and mouth as blood burst from both.

Her vision blacked out for an instant and when it came back around, she found she had been rolled over yet again. She choked and coughed on the warmth flowing freely down her face. Lifting a stunned hand, she whimpered to find her nose had buckled beneath the force of the hit. She pushed her tongue forward, feeling the ugly sensation of her teeth dislodging from inside of her lower lip. Tears stung at her eyes and joined the blood that already slipped over her cheeks, heading for the ground.

A hard hand hauled her upright and she went compliantly, still spluttering and weeping as the creature set her shoulders against the brick wall. Her gut churned with fear and a swell of shame that she had never imagined she might feel in a situation like this.

Two hits. That's all it had taken to incapacitate her.

Now, Anne was far from anyone's definition of a fighter. Until this moment, in fact, she had never actually been in a real fight. Still, she had always assumed if she had ever wound up in a situation like this, it would have taken more of struggle to bring her down.

And it stung, terribly, to learn that wasn't true.

She didn't know what to do.

When his hand returned to her face, she flinched as a blunt fingernail peeled a few stray strands of hair from where they lay plastered against her temple. Her skin crawled as the ends were pulled through smeared blood, painting fine lines of red higher along her cheekbone. She winced at the soft, malicious chuckle that still seemed distorted by the quietness of the creature's voice. Then, she looked up.

The angle of light had shifted when it had moved her, granting her full view of its features.

It wasn't made of shadow, but flesh and blood.

It was not human. Definitely not.

Beyond that fact, her battered mind registered little else.

Maybe, given time, Anne might have come to grips with what she was seeing. She might have recognized the protective plating running down its front or the curve of the shell rising above green shoulders. She could have recognized that the smirk it bore seemed so unnatural because it was formed from a turtle's beak rather than human lips.

Maybe, just maybe, she might have also seen the mottled brown slug clinging to the creature's neck and understood that it was not by its will that she had been brought to this end.

Instead, she could only tremble in astonishment as those horrible, empty eyes bore into hers. Malevolence hung between them and seemed to radiate out from him with every breath. Her bloodied lip quivered, painfully, as he suddenly leaned into her, sweeping break up along the curve of her jaw. He inhaled deep, held it in for a beat, and then let his breath go, sending fine coils of heat over her goose bumps. She shivered, even after it pulled back to send her a cruel smile.

"Easy, love, there's no need to fret."

It reached out to swipe a thumb along her upper lip. Anne flinched back, knocking her head against the bricks, but it only followed after her, jamming unbearable pressure against her ruined nose. A thick groan had slipped from her before it finally let up and tipped its head, curiously, to study the glob of cooling blood it had gathered on the broad pad of its thumb.

Anne coughed again, choking on the mucous and blood still draining from the back of her sinus.

"I'm gonna need you to pull yourself together a bit, okay?" it said with a grin. "See, we're putting together a little party, you might say. And you're a guest of honor."

It closed its mouth over its bloody thumb, scraping it against the back of its teeth. Dark eyes rolled skyward, thoughtfully, like a connoisseur sampling a new wine. Anne's throat convulsed at the thought.

"Oh, yeah," it said at length. "She's gonna find a _lot_ of use for you."

Anne blinked.

_She?_

His fist cut across her cheek in a vicious arc, bouncing her skull off the wall with enough force to bring down a man twice her size. The girl let out a wet and garbled grunt and all the feeble resistance she had maintained so far went out of her. The turtle-thing caught her beneath the arms as she slumped forward, lifting her as if she were nothing more than a child and bringing her up and over his shoulder.

Anne's chin slammed into the back of its shell and it rose, bringing the toes of her shoes off the cement. The girl groaned a little when the rim of the carapace dug into her gut, but all of that annoying whimpering had come to an end.

Or so _he_ thought.

He laughed to himself, setting off again into the darkness, and reveling in the good fortune of his find. He cast a wary glance behind, should anything unpleasant be following his steps, and grinned to find there was nothing in alley but the pair of them. He passed by the bakery's back door and vanished into shadow with his new captive in tow.

Anne's keys continued to sway against the falling rain, still jammed into place in the back door. There they would remain until Sophie reported to work herself.

The owner of the bakery would be seen screaming out into the front street with a young woman's abandoned purse clutched in her hands. She would be wailing about blood and keys, and someone named Annie all why those gathered around her fumbled for their phones to call the authorities. They didn't have a clue what to make of the hysterical woman or what discovery had brought her to this state.

As far as they could tell, however, something had happened to this Annie girl.

Something bad.

* * *

><p>AN: Well, there we go, the Lady's first human victim.

Next chapter, we catch up with Casey, April, Donnie, and Splinter. See how they are all faring, eh?


End file.
